The mobile billboard circled Sunrise Hospital during the picket. Photo courtesy of SEIU 1107
Workers picketed outside Sunrise Hospital in Las Vegas on Monday to raise awareness for their continued struggle while executives make millions.
Veronica Lamphier, a medical social worker at Sunrise Hospital, said that she and her colleagues are dealing with high turnover rates, below-market pay, understaffing, and burnout.
Such struggles are taking place around the country as for-profit hospitals make cuts to maintain profits and high executive pay.
‘We need their help to support us’
The picketing workers are members of the hospital’s social work department, the laboratory medical technologists, occupational therapists, pharmacists, physical therapists and speech language pathologists.
They organized the picket to voice their concerns and get public support as they continue union contract negotiations this week.
“We want the public to know we want to be there and help them as much as we can,” Lamphier said about the pickets. “And we need their help to support us, to tell the executives at Sunrise to respect us a little bit.”
The workers asked the public to show their support by visiting RespectSunriseProfessionals.org, which allows visitors to email the CEOs of HCA and Sunrise directly. The picketers also encourage people to support the movement on social media using the hashtag #RespectSunriseProfessionals.
‘It makes you feel like you’re not respected’
While the workers earn non-competitive pay and work with low staffing levels, the CEO of the Hospital Corporation of America (HCA), the company that owns Sunrise Hospital, made over $23 million last year.
A proxy statement submitted to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in March revealed the earnings of its corporate membership, with CEO Samuel Hazen taking in the most.
HCA (Hospital Corporation of America) overall gained a profit of over $5.7 billion last year, according to multiple financial reports.
“It makes you feel like you’re not respected,” Lamphier said about the pay disparity between Hazen and the hospital workers. “It really makes you very angry.”
‘The problem lies in that the staff’s not being recognized’
The protesting workers unionized with the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) in January 2024, but they have not reached a union contract agreement in the over 18 months since.
Monday was the second time this year that these workers picketed to try to push contract negotiations.
“Sunrise is a terrific hospital that provides the high level care that our community needs,” Lamphier said. “But the problem lies in that the staff’s not being recognized.”
The workers and hospital re-entered union contract negotiations on Tuesday, according to a representative with SEIU Local 1107.
Lamphier said that if the negotiations do not move forward by Wednesday, August 27, the workers will vote to take more extreme measures in fighting for their contract.
Mark Credico is an independent journalist working in Southern Nevada. He covers subjects including government accountability, homelessness, workers' unions and the environment.
