BINGHAMTON, N.Y. (WBNG) — 340 nurses at Guthrie Lourdes Hospital are now unionized. According to the National Labor Relations Board, a vote to form a union passed Wednesday with 161 votes in favor and 76 votes against. The nurses will be represented by 1199SEIU.
“We’re hopeful that we can actually make things better,” said Ian, a registered nurse at Guthrie Lourdes since 2024. “And improve care for our patients.”
This comes as several nurses said recent changes around the hospital have decreased work quality for patients. They said nurses needing to take care of more patients at once — while pay stays stagnant — led to this action.
“A lot of people have gotten increasingly burnt out over the last two years as changes have been made,” Ian said, “Which have increased our workload without any changes, like no increase pay,” he said.
In a statement provided to 12 News on Thursday, Guthrie said: “Lourdes Hospital is committed to supporting caregivers and providing exceptional care for the patients and communities we serve.”
“Our nurses play a vital role in our mission, and we are grateful for the dedication and skill they show every day. We respect the outcome of Wednesday’s election and will engage with the union in good faith – continuing to do what’s right for our patients, caregivers and communities.”
Hospital President Kathy Connerton said while she appreciates the work of the nurses, she doesn’t believe a union is necessary.
“I don’t believe we need a third party in the middle determining how we work together,” Connerton stated in a video posted to Guthrie’s website. “I believe that you are the best source of information about what’s working well and what’s not working well, and not a third party who’s in the middle making those decisions for you and for us.”
Guthrie recently posted a “Know the Facts” page regarding union representation to its website, which appears to focus on the downside of unionizing for employees.
It states union charges for members, changes it emphasizes are not guaranteed, and opposing testimony from registered nurses.
Regarding this page, Guthrie stated “Know the Facts was created to provide reliable information and answer common questions during the union election process. Our goal was to support informed decision-making by helping eligible hospital-based Lourdes RNs better understand the process and make their voices heard.”
“As we move forward, Guthrie remains committed to working collaboratively with the union while staying grounded in our core values of patient-centeredness, teamwork and excellence.”
Nurses we spoke to don’t see this as an encouraging sign for good faith negotiations.
“If we propose a contract and they reject it, that’s their call,” Ian said. “They have the power to say, yes, we accept this contract.”
Now that the union has formed, members hope to fight for better benefits, improved health care, and a decrease to the nurse-to-patient ratio.
“At this point, many of our ratios did increase this year,” Ian said. “And at the very least, we would like to keep those static rather than let those be increased, though we would like to have those reduced to previous levels.”
The union plans to begin negotiations for a collective bargaining agreement with Guthrie once the election results are certified by the NLRB.
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