In the words of Pope John Paul II, “[Labor] organizations … are an indispensable element of social life, especially in modern industrial societies.” In 1891, Pope Leo XIII released Revum Novarum, the first papal edict to focus on the rights of workers. Since then, the Catholic Church has supported the rights of workers to form unions or other associations to secure their rights to fair wages and working conditions, a specific application of the more general right to associate.
As a Catholic university, Georgetown has a responsibility to apply the Catechism to all of its branches, including its hospital, which is technically managed by a secular business. The operation of the hospital by MedStar, a private healthcare organization, is governed by the Georgetown-MedStar Clinical Partnership. This document states that “MedStar, which has proven experience in sustaining Catholic commitments, will preserve Georgetown’s strict adherence to the Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services. Georgetown University Hospital’s outstanding pastoral services and charity care programs will be maintained.”
MedStar hasn’t lived up to these directives, though, leaving workers at a hospital with a Catholic identity to fight for affordable healthcare.
On Monday, Nov. 25, the Service Employees International Union 1199E-DC and MedStar’s management at Georgetown University Medical Center reached a tentative agreement on a two-and-a-half year contract. It was the first time workers had negotiated with MedStar since its takeover, and resulted in a cancellation of the worker’s planned walkout. The two sides had been negotiating a new Collective Bargaining Agreement since the expiration of an extension at the end of June.
Despite previous contract negotiations, Medical Center workers had never taken such drastic measures until a few weeks ago. In the week before the planed walkout, they wore stickers asserting their commitment to achieving a fair contract (for example, “Quality Healthcare Jobs By Any Means Necessary”), distributed leaflets in the community and presented the administration a petition for justice. In addition, Georgetown Solidarity Committee gathered over 1,500 signatures on a petition, distributed leaflets on campus and attended negotiations demonstrating their support. The president of SEIU, Andrew Stern, pledged to assist the workers at the hospital and dispatched three organizers from sister organizations to help in the campaign.
The two sides reached a tentative agreement on major points, such as an agreement not to subcontract union work. Organizers said that subcontracting gambles with quality healthcare by outsourcing work to cheaper bidders and circumvents union wages, benefits and rights. If written into a contract, this agreement will set a precedent for the sort of labor relations MedStar wants to be known for.
The workers ratified the agreement on Wednesday, Nov. 27, but what remains to be done is the drafting of a solid contract reflecting the understanding of both parties. The negotiations were encumbered by mutual distrust; it is hoped that the talks and the resulting agreement have largely dispelled these beliefs. With a little imagination and a lot of good will, this contract could act as a starting point for a very productive labor-management relationship as the Georgetown University Hospital strives to be a quality healthcare provider.
