Workers at Christian Care Home in Ferguson, MO, have approved a new labor contract that calls for across-the-board raises following a 104-day strike.
The nursing home strike started Dec. 1 and included nursing assistants, housekeepers and dietary workers represented by the SEIU Healthcare union. Representatives said about 65 full-time and 25 part-time workers joined the strike, with many playing an active role in picketing.
SEIU claimed the facility engaged in unfair labor practices. In December, employees said they were striking because operators canceled or refused vacation requests, and violating contract terms by switching workers’ schedules. According to the union, a local branch of the National Labor Relations Board made an “initial finding of merit” in its favor.
The Missouri secretary of state’s office lists the nursing home’s owner as the Christian Woman’s Benevolent Association, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. A woman who answered the phone there declined comment to the newspaper.
The negotiated raises take effect next March 1, or earlier if other staff get raises before then, the Post-Dispatch reported. The agreement also requires the facility to raise pay rates if the state’s minimum wage goes up in 2019 and 2020. Christian Care Home will also pay any increase in health insurance rates this year and half next year.
