Nearly 700 nursing home workers went on strike Monday at 11 facilities in Illinois, seeking higher pay and greater protections from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Certified nursing assistants (CNAs), aides, housekeepers and other workers went on strike at 6 a.m. after failing to reach a contract agreement with the owner of Infinity Healthcare Management of Illinois.
The members of SEIU Healthcare Illinois and Indiana said they were seeking pay of $15.50 an hour for CNAs, and about $15 an hour for housekeepers and other workers, and hazard pay as essential workers during the pandemic. They say it’s similar to terms other workers in the state got after a nursing home strike earlier this year by about 10,000 workers at 100 nursing homes.
Infinity received nearly $13 million in federal coronavirus relief aid this year and is seeking more, according to the union, part of the Service Employees International Union.
Infinity did not answer repeated phone calls or respond to repeated requests for comment. Nursing home industry officials have said repeatedly that they are hampered by low Medicaid payments, and need public financial aid, protective equipment and testing to get through the coronavirus pandemic.
Illinois lawmakers last year increased Medicaid funding for nursing homes by up to $240 million, and $70 million of that was meant to address staffing needs.
Most of the 11 homes that would be affected by a strike are in the Chicago area. They include City View Multicare Center in Cicero, which had 249 coronavirus cases, and Niles Nursing & Rehabilitation in Niles, which had 54 COVID-19-related deaths, both among the most at any long-term care facility in the state.
The other homes are Ambassador Nursing & Rehabilitation Center, Continental Nursing & Rehabilitation Center, Lakeview Rehabilitation & Nursing Center, Southpoint Nursing & Rehabilitation Center, all in Chicago, and Oak Lawn Respiratory & Rehabilitation Center, Forest View Rehabilitation in Itasca, Parker Nursing & Rehabilitation Center in Streator, West Suburban Nursing & Rehabilitation in Bloomingdale and Momence Meadows Nursing & Rehabilitation Center.
Most of the workers are Black or Hispanic women. Typically, managers and contract workers attempt to replace the striking nursing home workers. Even with all their employees, nursing homes have chronically been accused of not having enough staff members, and administrators have said it’s especially hard to find enough workers during the pandemic, when some are sick or afraid to work.
About two-thirds of Infinity workers said they had to work a second job to make ends meet, which increases the risk of exposure to COVID-19, while some workers left for higher pay elsewhere, leaving the homes short-staffed, union officials said. They said testing for COVID-19 at Infinity is inconsistent with slow results.
“We are striking for our lives, to protect ourselves and our families and to stand up for our residents,” CNA Shantonia Jackson said at news conference on the picket line in Cicero.
A strike was averted in May when the Illinois Association of Health Care Facilities granted pay raises and $2 an hour hazard pay to about 10,000 SEIU workers at more than 100 homes.
AARP was not involved in these disputes, but AARP Illinois State Director Bob Gallo said his organization was saddened that vulnerable nursing home residents are caught up in a dispute that threatens their safety during the pandemic.
“As an organization dedicated to advocating on behalf of older adults and their families,” Gallo said, “AARP hopes a quick resolution can be found that prioritizes the quality of life, health and safety of nursing home residents and the nursing home staff at a time when they need us the most.”
