Workers To Fresenius: Don’t Put Profits Over Patients

January 16, 2016

Members of 1199SEIU and the New York State Nurses Association held a joint informational picket at sites throughout New York City and the Hudson Valley today to urge the company to put patients before profits. Fresenius Medical Care, a German-based hemodialysis company, made $1.6 billion in profits last year and this year is projecting a 15% to 20% increase over that amount. Yet at the bargaining table, the company continues to threaten workers’ training and health benefits.

Workers say this gravely affects their ability to provide quality care to their patients. Finally, Fresenius workers represented by 1199SEIU and the New York State Association of Nurses said they’d had enough. Workers were joined on the picket lines by allies, community members and elected officials including Rep. Nydia Velazquez, Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams and others.