For Immediate Release Contact: Barbara Brady
(o) 651-414-2849
(c) 651-202-0845
barbara.brady@mnnurses.org
Rick Fuentes
(o) 651-414-2863
(c) 612-741-0662
rick.fuentes@mnnurses.org
(St. Paul) – April 23, 2018 – A surprise announcement from Mayo Clinic Health System is a cynical distraction from the fact that Albert Lea residents are losing their full-service hospital and workers are losing jobs, according to members of SEIU Healthcare Minnesota and the Minnesota Nurses Association.
“The announcement that Mayo is asking nurses to commit now to take jobs that won’t exist for up to a year and a half exponentially increases the uncertainty that employees already have about their futures,” said MNA President Mary C. Turner. “Mayo is once again causing more anxiety among employees and going against what they said they were going to do. This raises the question of Mayo’s true motivation about the actual timeline for closing the Albert Lea units. Mayo’s actions since the announcement last June 12 have eroded public and employee trust even more.”
“Closing a community hospital and making longtime employees reapply for jobs they have done for decades isn’t ‘innovative,’ it is greedy,” said SEIU Healthcare President Jamie Gulley. “As has been the case with this whole process, the details are murky for community members, but the track record indicates this will almost certainly mean more profits for Mayo executives at the expense of the jobs and healthcare of Albert Lea families. If this were being done in good faith, it wouldn’t be a surprise to employees. It is frustrating and disheartening that Mayo CEO Dr. Noseworthy continues to show such disrespect for rural healthcare and the people of Albert Lea.”
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