Hartford HealthCare (HHC)

Offering Hope through Union Activism

Thu, 10/13/2022 - 5:00pm
Members of AFT Connecticut-affiliated local unions representing health professionals in an increasingly consolidated industry are raising the alarm when it comes to an escalating patient care crisis. In an interview for our national union's online "AFT Health Care," Backus Federation of Nurses President Sherri Dayton (left in photo, below) offers insights and suggestions for overcoming challenges. Her timely advice includes supporting candidates seeking political office this November running on the "labor is your neighbor" platform:

Taking Action to Resolve Windham’s Patient Care Crisis

Fri, 09/16/2022 - 2:30pm
Caregivers in the state's "Quiet Corner" are joining the growing chorus of their colleagues across the nation calling strikes when provoked by heartless health chains. Local AFT Connecticut-affiliated union leaders in a joint commentary explained how members reached this difficult decision. Windham Federation of Professional Nurses President Andrea Riley, RN, (left photo, below) and Windham Community Memorial Hospital (WCMH) Employees United President Heather Howlett, CA (right photo) collectively urged support from "all who share our concerns:"
 

Preserving a Community’s Vital Health Services

Mon, 08/22/2022 - 5:30pm
Members of AFT Connecticut-affiliated local unions representing health professionals employed by Hartford HealthCare (HHC) are resisting attempts to gut their patients' obstetric services. In a recent opinion piece, Natchaug Hospital Unions United Vice President and community coalition leader Brenda Buchbinder (at microphone, in photo below) called out the chain's neglect, urging executives make "maternity services safe and local once more."
 

Advancing Workplace Safety Because "We Stuck By Our Priorities"

Fri, 04/30/2021 - 6:30pm
Union members have over the past four months demonstrated the power of combining persistence and activism to make significant gains at the negotiating table. Our latest collective bargaining report showcases a local affiliate whose leaders organized high profile public actions to build support and mount pressure on their employer. Their commitment to a healthier and safer workplace paved the way for winning long overdue protections.
 

Speaking Out for Essential Workers Who Risked it All

Fri, 03/26/2021 - 1:30pm
Local and state union activists and leaders earlier this month turned-out in record numbers to advocate for themselves and fellow frontliners impacted by the COVID-19 (novel coronavirus) crisis. The occasion was a legislative public hearing held by the Connecticut General Assembly's committee that oversees employment policies and practices. Joined by members of allied labor organizations, they took a strong stand to demand restitution for their sacrifices and preparation for the next pandemic.
 

Backus Hospital Nurses Secure New Contract That Ensures "Great Quality Care" for Region

Thu, 10/22/2020 - 11:30am
NORWICH—Registered nurses at the William W. Backus Hospital in Norwich, yesterday voted nearly unanimously to approve a settlement with the hospital, which followed a two-day strike. The agreement reached Saturday with Hartford HealthCare (HHC), which operates the 213-bed acute care facility, improves protective gear policies and empowers the caregivers to address staffing issues. The pact also resolves long-standing recruitment and retention concerns by making significant economic investments in the workforce.
 

Braving the Elements to Lock In "What Matters Most"

Wed, 09/30/2020 - 5:30pm
The ongoing COVID-19 (novel coronavirus) crisis meant that the majority of local unions' collective bargaining efforts over the summer focused on negotiating narrow pandemic-related agreements. Despite the unprecedented challenges, leaders of half a dozen AFT Connecticut affiliates successfully concluded efforts to ratify full successor contracts. We're featuring one that stood out because members not only overcame the virus, but also faced down a hurricane.
 

"Securing Our Wins" Before the Pandemic Hit

Fri, 07/17/2020 - 5:30pm
Local unions' collective bargaining efforts immediately following the declaration of the COVID-19 (novel coronavirus) crisis as a public health emergency focused on the pandemic's impact. At the same time, final action on several negotiated agreements before Connecticut residents were urged to "stay safe and stay home” was delayed. We're highlighting two such examples of new contracts finally in force but which at the peak of the crisis faced uncertain outcomes.
 

Empowering Members "to Speak Out and Win"

Tue, 08/07/2018 - 5:30pm
Collective bargaining agreements reached over the past six weeks with multiple employers for thousands of working people represented by AFT Connecticut-affiliated local unions share much in common. The individual contracts certainly included gains designed to meet the needs of the union members who ratified them. Each was also the product of collective efforts demonstrating that the "U and I in Union" is how to achieve that which cannot be accomplished alone.
 

Honoring "Heroes" for Going the Extra Mile

Thu, 07/19/2018 - 5:30pm
Five Connecticut caregivers this past weekend were recognized at our national union’s biennial convention for volunteering to provide assistance following the devastation of two hurricanes. The registered nurses in April had joined a team of mainland health professionals for a relief mission to the U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI). Together they performed vision and hearing screenings for over 9,000 public school students in the territory, an accomplishment that earned them accolades as "AFT Heroes" for 2018.
 
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