(GLOVERSVILLE, NEW YORK) - Nurses represented by the New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA) at Nathan Littauer Hospital held an informational picket late last week (on Thursday, April 24th) to demand management return to the bargaining table and settle a fair contract with Safe Staffing Standards and a real plan to recruit and retain Nurses for safe patient care.

After seeing no movement from management, the Nurses escalated their call and picketed outside the hospital to demand that they agree to bargaining dates.

The Nurses were joined by a number of community and Labor allies, including Assembly Member Phil Steck, the Capital District AFL-CIO Area Labor Federation’s Seth Cohen, the Reverend Peter Cook from the New York State Council of Churches, the Reverend West McNeill of the New York State Labor-Religion Coalition and Communications Workers of America (CWA) Local 1118’s Mike Panzarino.

As Maternal Health Centers across the State shutter, Nathan Littauer’s maternal health services fulfill a vital need, delivering babies to families across the region, NYSNA Officials said.

While demands on the Hospital’s Emergency Center have dramatically increased over the past decade, the hospital has not kept up with staffing to meet those needs, Union Officials said.

The Emergency Room has a capacity for 20 beds and routinely has just one Full-Time Staff Member on the night shift with travel Nurses filling in gaps, they added.  

Registered Nurse Emily Orcutt said: “We are fighting for better care for our patients. When the Emergency Room is understaffed, it creates bottlenecks across the hospital and patients have to wait much longer for care. When we have surges in our Emergency Room, I fear going to the bathroom and leaving other Nurses with a dangerous number of patients. This is not the care we want to give. Enough is enough. We need hospital management to take action, return to the table and invest in patient care in this community.”  

Nurses at Nathan Littauer are among the lowest-paid Nurses in the State and have some of the highest health care costs in the State among Unionized Nurses, which leads to high turnover and understaffed Units, NYSNA said.

While the hospital has submitted staffing plans to the State that outline that the maximum number of med-surge patients placed in a Nurse’s care should be five, Nurses are routinely given eight patients, placing patient care at risk, NYNSA said.

Nathan Littauer Hospital administrators can afford to invest in safe patient care, said Union Officials, who added the total compensation for Hospital CEO Sean Fadale was over $740,000 in 2023, a 32% hike from the year prior.  

NYSNA President Nancy Hagans said: “Nathan Littauer is a small hospital that is essential for the care of residents in Fulton County and beyond. Rural patients deserve the same quality care that patients receive at other hospitals. That starts with respecting your Nurses and offering pay and benefits that make them want to stay. Nathan Littauer nurses should know they have all (42,000) NYSNA (Member) Nurses behind them in this fight.”  

To Read This Labor News Report In Its Entirety, Go To: NYSNA Nurses at Nathan Littauer Hospital Held Informational Picket, Demanded Management Return to the Table and Invest in Safe Patient Care | New York State Nurses Association

Photo Courtesy Of NYSNA’s Facebook Page.