HPAE Statement on HRH’s Pending Layoff Notices to Heights University Hospital Workers
“Less than 6 months ago, Hudson Regional Health assured a bankruptcy court and government regulators that they had the resources necessary to take over and operate Christ Hospital in Jersey City, which they’ve since renamed Heights University Hospital. Now, HRH executives claim that they can no longer afford to keep Heights open and are seeking to renege on their commitment by threatening to serve workers at the hospital with layoff notices.”
Union leaders were presented with no plan for the future but were encouraged to tell the Department of Health and the Governor that they need money to keep Heights Hospital afloat. According to the Hudson Regional administrators, if they don’t get state funding, they will be forced to either lay off staff, reduce services or close the hospital. However, they gave the union no specifics.
“The community of Jersey City deserves to know why Hudson Regional is willing to put healthcare services at risk so quickly after vowing to preserve the hospital and maintain services. This decision by HRH is disgraceful and shows a complete disregard of the workers or the people of Hudson County. The NJ Department of Health must hold the owners accountable to their commitment to the State of New Jersey and the patients served by the hospital.”
“As a union, HPAE reserves the right to negotiate the decision and the impact on our members who have sacrificed year in, year out caring for Hudson County patients. We will stand up and fight for this community.” ~ HPAE President Debbie White, RN
RESOURCES:
- Understaffed. Unsafe for everyone: The urgent need for Safe Staffing legislation in New Jersey
- Results of Survey of Current & Recent Bedside Nurses in NJ Hospitals
- Decades of Safe Staffing and Current Research
- HPAE POSITION PAPER, MARCH 2023 | Understaffed. Overworked. Unsafe for everyone: The urgent need for Safe Staffing legislation in New Jersey
- HPAE POSITION PAPER II, APRIL 2024 | Understaffed. Overworked. Unsafe for everyone: The urgent need for Safe Staffing legislation in New Jersey
For more information, contact: Michael Allen, (646) 436-7556.
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