An open letter to my Labor Family about Danbury Hospital

They were there when the survivors of Sandy Hook arrived.

They worked side by side with our AFT nurses.
They dealt with the same terrible reality of that day and the days to follow.
They felt the pain of our AFT education members of Sandy Hook School.
They became a part of our family.

Last fall, they voted to join us as AFT members, forming the Danbury and New Milford Federation of Healthcare Technical Employees, 250 dedicated, courageous LPNs and Techs.

And how is management of the hospital treating them?
With disrespect.              

Management refuses to negotiate in good faith, forcing the Techs to file charges with the federal government (NLRB).

Those charges are being investigated.
Management will not even give them the respect to agree to the non-economic articles that the Registered Nurses have in their contract, articles that have worked well for 35 years!
The LPN/Techs aren’t asking for the world, just a voice in their workplace.

I guess it is not surprising.

Danbury and New Milford Hospitals are no longer the community hospitals they once were.

They are a part of a large corporation, Western Connecticut Health Network.
So I’m reaching out to my sisters and brothers of AFT and the greater Labor Community to stand with our LPN/Techs.
I know how hard it is to go against management who is willing to violate the law, I lived that at Backus Hospital when we joined the AFT family in 2011.

These LPN/Techs are courageous and strong.

We can show our newest sisters and brothers our support by signing their petition at https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/demand-wchn-respect-hospital-techs-therapists

Thank you as always.

In solidarity and service,

John Brady RN

Executive VP
AFT Connecticut