Members of OPEIU Local 40 are set to begin a three-day strike July 7 at McLaren Macomb, a 288-bed tertiary teaching hospital in Mount Clemens, Mich.
The union represents 700 nurses and support staff at the facility, according to ABC affiliate WXYZ. McLaren Macomb is part of Grand Blanc, Mich.-based McLaren Health Care, a 12-hospital health system with 20,000 employees.
Union members voted to authorize a strike in June. The union and hospital have been negotiating a new labor contract for the service group for about two years and for the nurses for about a year, according to the union’s strike notice. A hospital spokesperson said in a statement shared with Becker’s that during negotiations, the hospital “put forth an offer that includes a wage increase that creates a market-leading compensation package, nationally benchmarked staffing ratios, and qualified benefits.”
The union contends that the hospital has bargained in bad faith, hindering members’ ability to reach fair contracts. “Our efforts are focused on a stronger patient matrix, fighting McLaren’s poverty wages, ending subcontracting, and improving working conditions,” the union’s website reads.
The hospital said in its statement that “McLaren Macomb sincerely respects, appreciates, and values all of its team members and their roles in the care process.. It is regrettable that the union has placed the hospital in this untenable position, but its overall commitment to serving the community is unwavering and will not be deterred by the union’s irresponsible negotiating tactics.”
McLaren Macomb also said it will employ replacement workers for five days.
