Community group urges Queen’s to avert nurses strike
COURTESY HAWAII WORKERS CENTER
Community members and the nonprofit Hawaii Workers Center delivered a letter to Queen’s this morning urging the hospital to negotiate in good faith and to avert a nurses strike next week.
COURTESY HAWAII WORKERS CENTER
Community members and the nonprofit Hawaii Workers Center delivered a letter to Queen’s this morning urging the hospital to negotiate in good faith and to avert a nurses strike next week.
A group of community members are hoping to avert a nurses strike at Queen’s Medical Center next week.
The strike is imminent, as the Hawaii Nurses’ Association, which represents more than 1,900, has notified Queen’s of a planned, three-day strike starting 11 a.m. on Monday over unfair labor practices at both its downtown and West Oahu campuses.
Members of the nonprofit Hawaii Workers Center gathered at Queen’s downtown campus this morning to deliver a letter to President and CEO Jason Chang in support of the nurses, and asking hospital leaders to negotiate in good faith.
They said that a strike affects the community, and urged the Queen’s administration to offer a fair contract with competitive wages and safe working conditions, as well as ensure safe nurse-to-patient staffing ratios, particularly in the trauma center and emergency departments.
Cassie Chee, one of the “Kapi‘olani 10” arrested during the lockout of union nurses at the Kapi‘olani Medical Center for Women & Children last year, said she supported the nurses, as her sister is a nurse.
“The nurses are doing this not just for themselves and their families – they’re doing this for the community,” she said. “Safe staffing is not just something that is affecting nurses and their ability to work, but it is also for us.”
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Hawaii Rep. Ikaika Hussey, another “Kapiolani 10” member, also called for an end to the impasse, saying the state Legislature has historically — and still has an ongoing responsibility today – for how the hospital treats it workers and provides services to the community.
The letter was signed by the Hawaii Workers Center, along with members and friends of the Defend and Respect Hawaii’s Workers Coalition including: UNITE HERE Local 5, Honolulu Tenants Union, Imua Alliance, Hawaii Committee for Human Rights in the Philippines, and the law firm of Fujiwara & Rosenbaum, among others.
“The Queen’s Medical Center remains committed to reaching an agreement that both the hospital and our nurses can be proud of,” said Linda Puu, chief nursing executive, in a statement. “We are scheduled to meet with HNA tomorrow, Thursday, January 9. We hope to meet with the union through Sunday, January 12, 2025 to reach a settlement.”
Nurses at Queen’s have been working without a contract since June 30, and in negotiations for a new one since mid-April.
Talks occurred Tuesday, the union said, and resumes Thursday and Friday with a mediator.
