Nurses at Aspirus Iron River hospital will hold a rally this Friday, Oct. 17, to advocate for a fair contract and protest Aspirus’s continued cuts at U.P. hospitals.
In the latest cuts, the hospital will end coverage for emergency surgeries overnight effective Oct. 26, Aspirus Iron River executives said. This comes on top of Aspirus eliminating almost all certified nurse aide (CNA) positions at the Iron River hospital and adding responsibilities to the charge nurse helping on the emergency and medical-surgical units, as well as cuts at other U.P. Aspirus hospitals.
As they protest the continuing cuts, Iron River nurses are united in demanding a fair contract that recruits and retains nurses to work at the hospital and requires Aspirus to continue current service levels at the hospital. Bargaining is set to start soon. The Iron River’s nurses’ contract expires Dec. 31.
“Nurses are standing up for our patients and our community by telling Aspirus ‘enough is enough,’” said Nicole Fedie-Zaupa, an Aspirus Iron River nurse who is co-president of the local MNA (Michigan Nurses Association) union. “Having safe staffing at all times is our top priority. Ending surgeries overnight will send patients even farther away in an emergency. These continued cuts are unacceptable and disrespectful to the U.P. Aspirus needs to invest in nurses and invest in our community instead of making cuts at every turn.”
The rally will run from 4:30 until 6:15 Friday afternoon near the KFC restaurant on Adams Street in Iron River.
Aspirus Iron River MNA nurses are showing solidarity ahead of bargaining, citing Aspirus’s actions at the Ironwood hospital as setting the tone. At Aspirus Ironwood, executives refused to come back to the bargaining table last month until nurses filed a federal labor charge and media covered the issue.
Aspirus Ironwood nurses will vote Wednesday (Oct. 15) on a contract proposal. It’s expected that nurses will reject the offer.
“Aspirus is not sharing the whole picture about its current proposal, which offers lower wages for almost half of Ironwood nurses than our proposal does. In addition, Aspirus proposes to take away the wage structure that respects and rewards nurses’ experience. Aspirus is also failing to meaningfully address our proposal regarding the closure of Ironwood’s OB unit.”
“Instead of continuing to make cuts at U.P. hospitals, Aspirus should invest in nurses and the care our communities need. Our bargaining team made up of nurses elected by our peers cannot in good conscience recommend approval of Aspirus’s offer. We do not share Aspirus’s positive assessment of bargaining, especially given the fact that we had to force them back to the table by filing a federal labor charge. Our union is a democracy and nurses will make up their own minds when they vote on the Aspirus proposal Wednesday.”
The result of the vote will be released Thursday (Oct. 16).
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