A two-day vote by nurse practitioners and physician assistants at Seattle\u2019s Fred Hutch Cancer Center about whether to unionize has resulted in a tie. The unionization effort has been driven by concerns about patient care and working conditions, clinicians say.<\/p>\n
Sam Doyle, an oncological advanced registered nurse practitioner at Fred Hutch who led the effort to join the Union of American Physicians and Dentists, called it \u201ca shocking result.\u201d<\/p>\n
In order to hold a second vote, the union must successfully appeal to the National Labor Relations Board.<\/p>\n
Clinicians at Fred Hutch say they want a greater voice in decisions affecting their workplace.<\/p>\n
Workers say changes following the merger of Seattle Cancer Care Alliance and Fred Hutch Cancer Center increased workloads, contributed to staff turnover, and made it harder for clinicians to provide the level of care they believe patients deserve. They argue retaining experienced providers and ensuring clinicians have adequate time for patients are key to maintaining quality care.<\/p>\n
Changes after the merger<\/p>\n
\u201cWe didn\u2019t need a union before because people were, overall, quite happy with things,\u201d said Doyle. \u201cWhen the merger happened, our management structure, vibe, and day-to-day really changed at that point.\u201d<\/p>\n
The new workplace requirements, according to Doyle, trickle down to patients. She\u2019s heard from colleagues that patients experience a decline in care in several ways: longer wait times for testing, longer waits to receive a call or message about results, and changes in care teams and more reliance on floating or temporary staff members. There\u2019s also the reality of burned out health care workers not bringing their best selves to help people dealing with the toughest battle of their lives: cancer.<\/p>\n
RELATED: The U.S. health care system is in crisis. A Supreme Court ruling could make things worse<\/a><\/p>\n Doyle said the changes have contributed to providers quitting, which she believes ultimately affect patients.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve lost a lot of [nurse practitioners and physicians assistants.],\u201d she said. \u201cSomeone just resigned. The overall stress level is just untenable and people cannot keep up with the new demands of this project they feel has been thrust upon them.\u201d<\/p>\n Seeking a seat at the table<\/p>\n Doyle said those concerns led her to help organize the union effort.<\/p>\n \u201cIt won\u2019t be a perfect solution, but it is the only legally binding solution to get us a legal seat at the table,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n The organizing campaign took about 15 months to reach this week’s vote. Doyle said she felt Fred Hutch showed little opposition to the effort until organizers formally filed for an election<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cOnce we filed the petition, they were like, \u2018Let’s go. It’s on,\u2019\u201d Doyle said.<\/p>\n Fred Hutch pushes back<\/p>\n Ahead of this week\u2019s vote, Fred Hutch launched an information campaign through a website called Get the Facts Fred Hutch<\/a>. The site includes videos from executives and advanced practice providers, information about union dues and election procedures, and outlines management’s opposition to unionization. The website states that Fred Hutch believes employees and patients are best served by \u201cworking together directly and not through a union.\u201d<\/p>\n In a video message<\/a> posted on the website, Dr. Tom Lynch, Fred Hutch\u2019s president and director, addressed concerns raised by advanced practice providers.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \u201cI know we have got to do better and I am sorry for the fact that we have not done a better job of having the [advanced practice provider] voice heard,\u201d Lynch said. \u201cYou deserve a seat at the table. We\u2019re going to work as hard as we can to find the best ways to make that work.\u201d<\/p>\n Criticism about the campaign<\/p>\n Doyle shared a voicemail recording and screenshots of a text message sent by Lynch to a Fred Hutch employee with KUOW.<\/p>\n \u201cI’m just calling to remind you to vote this week in the election \u2014 the union election,\u201d Lynch states in the voicemail. \u201cYour vote matters. I very much hope that it\u2019s a no vote.\u201d<\/p>\n KUOW called the number associated with the voicemail and text message and reached Lynch. He confirmed he did contact employees to discuss the union vote.<\/p>\n In a statement to KUOW, Christina VerHeul, Fred Hutch\u2019s associate vice president of communications, said the organization had created opportunities for providers to ask questions and engage in dialogue, including group meetings, one-on-one conversations, phone calls, and text messages.<\/p>\n RELATED: Seattle\u2019s Fred Hutch marks 50 years of groundbreaking cancer research<\/a><\/p>\n LaborLab, a workers’ rights watchdog that tracks employer anti-union campaigns, estimates<\/a> Fred Hutch spent between $380,000 and $513,000, or about $3,000 per worker, on its Get the Facts Fred Hutch website and related outreach efforts.<\/p>\n