With a Florida state budget awaiting the governor's signature that takes significant healthcare dollars away from the bedside of ailing patients, nurses and healthcare workers at St. Mary's Medical Center in West Palm Beach last night overwhelmingly approved a new union contract that invests in caregivers and quality jobs for the Palm Beach County community. Hospital workers elected by their co-workers negotiated the contract with Tenet-owned St. Mary's where over 1,200 registered nurses and healthcare workers are represented by 1199SEIU.



At a time when middle-class families are struggling to make ends meet, the new contract guarantees wage increases and a preservation of benefits for the life of the contract to retain and attract experienced, highly-skilled nurses and healthcare workers for the benefit of patients and the community.



"I have seen significant changes in the healthcare industry since I became a nurse 32 years ago, so I'm very happy that we can continue making sure patient care doesn't get lost in the whirlwind of change that is going on around us," said Frank Genung, a registered nurse who has worked at St. Mary's for 20 years.



More than 10 years ago, the workers at St. Mary's voted to form a union, which has secured good jobs for the community and has given the workers a stronger voice at the hospital to ensure their patients receive the best care possible.



"Our union contract with St. Mary's provides us with avenues to ensure we are able to deliver the best care possible for our patients," added Genung. "We have a strong voice to advocate for things like safe staffing, which is so important to continuing the high standard of care our patients need and deserve."



In addition to the workers at St. Mary's, more than 4,400 nurses and hospital workers at seven Tenet-owned facilities in South Florida are represented by 1199SEIU. Workers at five of the Tenet-owned facilities are currently negotiating their first union contract with their employers.