POLITICS
fewer providers willing to accept Medicaid in the Bronx and around the state,” she said. “Women in the Bronx and similar communities are much more likely to have these childbirth complications than women in wealthy areas. I had to have two C-sections myself. It breaks my heart imagining that my babies could have gone home from hospital without their mother. It troubles me that my neighbors— Black & Latina women—are much more likely to have C-sections, life-threatening complications and even fatalities during childbirth.” Diaz said her community is suffering because the state refuses to pay the full cost of care for Medicaid patients, while the State of New York sits on massive reserves that could be saving lives. “Why? Are my neighbors in Morris Heights 30 percent less valuable than people in other communities?” she said. NYS elected representative also heard from Ana Medina, an 1199 Delegate and home care worker who lives in the South Bronx. “I’m the mother of three and have three beautiful grandchildren,” Medina said. “Growing up, my kids depended on Medicaid, and now two of my grandchildren are on Medicaid. Many people may not realize that so many hardworking New Yorkers, including healthcare workers who take care of other people’s families, do not have private insurance. This means our children often depend on Medicaid to be healthy.” Medina also knows what it’s like to have to go through the re-enrollment process every year—worried that they are looking for any excuse to take away her children’s’ health insurance. “Kids are exposed to so much at school. It is critical they have coverage,” she adds. “Missing checkups and shots, leaving asthma untreated—there are so many conditions that can become severe when they could have been prevented. Children and their parents should not worry about paying for medical expenses when they are struggling with an illness. We should be doing everything possible to keep children healthy—not putting up roadblocks.” 20
January-February 2024
OUR UNION
“Growing up, my kids depended on Medicaid, and now two of my grandchildren are on Medicaid. Kids are exposed to so much at school. It is critical they have coverage.” – Ana Medina, 1199 home care Delegate, who lives in the South Bronx.
Union Victories in MA and NY
1199 continues to grow and add new members who go on to negotiate strong contracts. Nearly 300 healthcare workers in the Dorchester neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts were celebrating on December 13, after forming a union with 1199SEIU at Upham’s Corner Health Center. “For me it was moving that we achieved a decisive victory for the working class,” said Jose Morales, a home care worker at Upham’s Corner. “With this process that we have achieved with La Unión 1199SEIU, we can negotiate a decent contract; where our voices are heard without any type of coercion.” Home care worker Ruth Akhungu said, “With the backing of our union, we have a strong voice to improve our working conditions and pay. As home care workers providing essential care, we need guaranteed raises, so our salaries increase with the rising cost of living.” The workers who voted to join 1199SEIU include home health aides, medical assistants, patient service representatives, maintenance and dental assistants. The Union victory at Upham’s Corner comes less than two months after nearly 450 workers at another Boston clinic, Fenway Health, voted to join 1199. Members at Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts, who formed their union in 2022, also agreed to their first contract in September 2023. In New York, more than 140 laboratory technologists at Northwell Health’s microbiologist facility won their 1199 vote on December
20. These professional workers intend to stay strong and build for their first contract battle with the healthcare giant. On the same day, another group of 17 professional workers at Mercy Hospital in Long Island celebrated an 1199SEIU union victory of their own. The case managers and social workers in the hospital’s behavioral health unit are the latest group to join 1199 since the hospital service workers were first organized in 2017.
These original members at Mercy Hospital recently negotiated substantial raises in their second contract. Direct care workers at the hospital will see increases of 18 percent over the next three years and significant improvements to their healthcare plan. “The pay increases we fought for and won are substantial,” 15year dietary aide Dawn Naughton said. “A lot of us have been working overtime or two jobs to survive. I did the calculations, and they are going to make a big difference in my life.” Manny Oxilus, a clinical laboratory associate who has worked at Mercy for 14 years, called the contract the “biggest win since we voted to join the union.” “People said it couldn’t be done, but we did it,” he said. “This contract has competitive wages and benefits that will help attract new talent and workers– and better staffing means better patient care.”
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Ruth Akhungu, a home care worker at Upham’s Corner
“For me, it was moving that we achieved a decisive victory for the working class.” – Jose Morales, a homecare worker at Upham’s Corner Health Center
1199 Magazine
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