Nursing Home Workers Picket Over Lack of Protective Equipment, Hazard Pay

Workers at two nursing homes in Huntington say they have not received proper protective equipment to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic and that their medical insurance has been put at risk, in violation of negotiated agreements.

Members of  1199 Service Employees International Union picketed Apex Rehabilitation and Healthcare in Huntington Station and Hilaire Rehabilitation and Nursing in Huntington earlier this week, demanding that the facilities’ owners pay their medical insurance consistently and on time, provide hazard pay and supply workers with sufficient amounts of personal protection equipment needed to cope with the epidemic. Organizers also said owners of the facilities didn’t pay into benefit funds and didn’t issue pay raises.

Owners did not respond to a request for comment.

The local union chapter represents certified nursing assistants, cooks, dishwashers, dietary aides and other workers and some licensed practical nurses.

In some cases, union organizer Maureen Gill said, certified nursing assistants and housekeepers working in rooms with Covid-19 patients didn’t have the right equipment, or were issued just one mask a week. 

“They’ve been totally disrespectful, even before the pandemic but even worse since,” said Maureen Gill, an organizer for the union. 
 
 
 
 

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