Communications Workers of America Wins Groundbreaking Tentative Agreement with Catholic Health System

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cwabuffalo@berlinrosen.com

Communications Workers of America Wins Groundbreaking Tentative Agreement with Catholic Health System

(BUFFALO, NY) -- The Communications Workers of America (CWA) bargaining committee for Catholic Health System is pleased to announce that a Tentative Agreement has been reached with Catholic Health on a new four-year contract covering 2,700 union workers in the system.  

If the contract is ratified by members who work at Mercy Hospital, Kenmore Mercy Hospital, and St. Joseph’s Hospital, the 35-day strike at Mercy will end and workers will return to their jobs. Contract explanation and ratification meetings are scheduled to take place on Saturday and Sunday, with the goal of bringing workers back to their jobs by Wednesday.

Full details of the contract are being withheld until comprehensive bargaining reports can be prepared and shared with the members.

CWA District 1 Vice President Dennis Trainor and Area Director Debora Hayes issued the following statement regarding the Tentative Agreement:

“We are very pleased with the tentative contract agreement we have reached with Catholic Health System. We have stressed from day one that frontline workers’ overriding concerns are sufficient staffing to ensure high-quality patient care, and a compensation package adequate to allow Catholic Health to attract and retain the staff needed to obtain staffing improvements. This contract achieves those major objectives, with historic breakthroughs in guaranteed safe staffing ratios, substantial across the board wage increases, including bringing all workers above $15 an hour, and preserving health and retirement plans intact. Hundreds of new workers will be hired under this agreement to remedy dire staffing shortages. 

Our members, the frontline nurses, technical, service and clerical workers at Catholic Health, made incredible sacrifices over the last five weeks to stand up for high quality patient care in Buffalo, and this tentative agreement is a tremendous victory that sets new standards in care for the region. We salute the determination and fighting spirit of our members, whose commitment has produced an outcome that will be completely transformative for patients, workers and the Buffalo community.”