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Workers at metro Detroit nursing home go on strike amid COVID-19 pandemic

Posted at 5:58 AM, Oct 19, 2020
and last updated 2020-10-19 18:13:02-04

WESTLAND, Mich. (WXYZ) — Nursing home workers at Four Seasons Rehabilitation and Nursing are expected to walk off the job and strike Monday morning over unfair labor practices.

The workers at the nursing home in Westland said they delayed their planned strike by 30 days after Gov. Gretchen Whitmer urged SEIU Healthcare Michigan to negotiate toward a contract.

“Governor Whitmer said it best: ‘With COVID-19 cases in Michigan on the rise, we cannot allow our most vulnerable patients to lack vital care.’ But nursing home owners have refused to come to an agreement that would equip us to provide the care our residents deserve,” Worker Carolyn Cole said in a release. “We’re going on strike because if our workplace isn’t up to standard, both workers and residents suffer.” more.

The workers say there have been weeks of negotiation with the nursing home chain, but no resolution was reached. The workers want management to improve staffing levels, provide adequate PPE, pay frontline workers a living wage and more.