Axios
National Nurses United, a labor union with more than 175,000 members nationwide, organized several strikes across the country Thursday, calling on the hospital industry to "invest in safe staffing."
Why it matters: The health care industry has struggled against the backdrop of heightened health risks, worker shortages and burnout, largely exacerbated by the onslaught of the coronavirus.
- A slew of nurses, front-line technicians and other health care professionals launched several strikes across the U.S. last year. The health care industry has lost more than 540,000 jobs between February 2020 and September 2021.
- The union also called on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to "strengthen" the isolation recommendation for health care workers and the public, adding that the latest guidelines are "motivated by ... employers."
What they're saying: Nurses "are enraged to see that, for our government and our employers, it’s all about what’s good for business, not what’s good for public health," NNU President Zenei Triunfo-Cortez said in a statement.
- "Our employers claim there is a ‘nursing shortage,’ and that’s why they must flout optimal isolation times, but we know there are plenty of registered nurses in this country," she added.
- "There is only a shortage of nurses willing to work in the unsafe conditions created by hospital employers and this government’s refusal to impose lifesaving standards."
