Einstein and Temple resident doctors in Philadelphia vote to unionize; CHOP residents narrowly vote against union

From Philly and the Pa. suburbs to South Jersey and Delaware, what would you like WHYY News to cover? Let us know!

Last year, medical residents at several major Philadelphia-area hospitals announced they wanted to form unions, and now some of the results are in.

Residents at Temple University Hospital, and Einstein Healthcare Network, which is now part of Jefferson Health, voted overwhelmingly to form a union with the Committee of Interns and Residents; whereas residents at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia voted narrowly against it late last year.

In a statement, a spokesperson for the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia said in part that they “firmly believe the best employee experience is achieved by direct, two-way communication and collaboration and will continue to partner with our residents and fellows to find ways to improve or strengthen that experience.”

Dr. Natalie LaBossier, a pediatric resident who helped organize the union effort, said this is a traditional argument that CHOP and other employers make to argue against unionizing — that a union would get in the way of the relationship between the hospital and residents.

“People really bought into those fear tactics about what their next steps in their journey would be like or things that they might lose because of unionizing, even though of course, we all know it is illegal to take away benefits as a result of unionizing,” she said.

She said she and other organizers are disappointed in the results, and are still discussing what worked and didn’t work about their campaign. They will have to wait a year if they want to organize another vote.

She said they still feel residents and patients at CHOP would benefit from a union contract.

“We chose to unionize because of countless personal stories we heard from residents and fellows who felt like they were struggling to show up as the physicians and people that they wanted to be in their professional and their personal lives. We were concerned about them working 80 hours a week without the pay and benefits that we deserve, and meanwhile, our hospital administrators make millions,” she said. “Because of the significant burnout, many of us have even considered leaving medicine because we feel like there’s no way under our current system to practice as the patient-centered doctors that we want to be.”

In the meantime, she said they will focus on supporting the residents at other programs who will be voting this week and next week, which include Temple Health, Jefferson Health and ChristianaCare.

Last week, residents at Einstein Healthcare Network voted overwhelmingly in favor of forming a union, though the results have yet to be certified. In a statement, a Jefferson Health spokesperson said they respect the decision and “remain committed to maintaining an environment of exceptional medical training, open communication, and collaboration.”

The Committee of Interns and Residents confirmed late Thursday that residents at Temple University Hospital also voted in favor of forming a union by a large margin. Those results also need to be certified.

In a press release, Dr. Sarah Bart, a family medicine resident at Temple, said: “It’s time to put patients back at the center of our healthcare system. We won our union, now we are preparing our campaign for a fair contract that puts resources in patient care and supports physicians’ and patients’ well-being.”

Melissa Uribe, a spokesperson for the Committee of Interns and Residents, said the fact that so many residents in the Philadelphia area want to unionize shows that they feel they need union contracts to provide the best patient care.

“It’s very clear that the physicians right now without a union are not being heard,” she said. “Patients need to be at the center and the focus of patient care. And the physicians have acknowledged and realized that without a union contract, that’s just not possible.”

Last year, Penn Medicine residents ratified a union contract, making their residency program the first in Pennsylvania to unionize; and staff doctors at ChristianaCare in Delaware voted to form a union. This all comes as more medical residency programs around the country have unionized in the past few years.