SEIU workers will picket on April 10th in front of Pinecrest Medical Care Facility
Nurses at Pinecrest Medical Care Facility delivered a notice last Friday announcing their plan to host an informational picket in front of the facility on Monday, April 10th. Nurses are protesting low wages and retaliation against the Union by Pinecrest management which they say is harming their ability to provide care to residents.
“I became an LPN because I’m passionate about my residents and I want to provide the highest quality of care. But we are dealing with a staffing crisis at Pinecrest due to low wages and challenging working conditions. Pinecrest initially refused to negotiate with us, which is a shame because LPNs at our facility are the lowest paid in our entire region. These wage increases would only put us on par with other facilities. This is important because without competitive wages, we cannot recruit and retain staff and it’s the residents who ultimately will suffer. When we are so exhausted and worn out, it’s hard to give our residents their basic care, when what they deserve is extra care,” said Kasse Wellman, Licensed Practical Nurse at Pinecrest.
LPNs say they are regularly working overtime because Pinecrest’s wages are not competitive with other nursing homes in the area. After many RNs left Pinecrest last year due to low wages, LPNs say they’ve had to pick up their responsibilities without any increases in wages.
“We are exhausted, working long hours with double shifts and frequently taking overtime due to the lack of staff at our facility. Pinecrest is failing our community by refusing to invest in its care workers. Since we started raising these issues with management, we’ve seen retaliation against staff. Your loved ones could require care in our facility someday. If you care about our most vulnerable residents, we encourage our community members to speak up and demand that Pinecrest solve the staffing crisis,“ said Mason Wallace, Licensed Practical Nurse at Pinecrest.
WHAT: Informational Picket by SEIU workers at Pinecrest Medicare Care Facility
WHO: LPNs, Nursing home workers, nursing home residents and their families
WHEN: Monday, April 10th from 8:00am – 12:00pm
WHERE: Pinecrest Medical Care Facility, N15995 Main St, Powers, MI 49874
RSVP: Kevin Lignell, kevin.lignell@seiuhealthcaremi.org, 313-403-2697