Fueled by the desire for more respect and the need to make improvements in resident care, nearly 140 workers at the Broomall Presbyterian Village nursing home in Delaware County voted overwhelmingly to form a union with SEIU Healthcare Pennsylvania on April 14th.
“We take care of seniors from all over the area,” said Joanne Daniels, a CNA from Philadelphia who has worked at Broomall Presbyterian for almost 11 years. “But management isn’t paying the wages or benefits we need to keep doing this hard work. Now that we have formed our union, we can work to improve resident care and to get the wages and benefits we need to stay on the job.”
The new union will include certified nursing assistants (CNAs), housekeepers, dietary workers and other employees at the facility.
“Our residents need us to come to work healthy and able to do our very best,” said Antiope Asulfat, a CNA who has worked at the home for 8 years. “Our union means we will be able to improve care at this nursing home, and to make sure that every worker is treated respectfully.”
This victory makes these workers the latest in a growing list of nursing homes who have formed unions with SEIU Healthcare PA. 1,000 workers at 8 other nursing homes in the greater Philadelphia area have joined our union since 2006.