Over the past year, many of us have gotten to know Jim Staus, Ron Oakes, and Al Turner pretty well.  All three of worked at UPMC until the hospital chain illegally fired them for participating in the union organizing effort.

Their union, the SEIU, has filed charges with the National Labor Relations Board, which sided with the workers and ordered that they be reinstated with back-pay.  To stall the process and keep Jim, Ron and Al out of work longer, UPMC has appealed the ruling.  Earlier this year, UPMC made an offer to Jim, Ron and Al that would give them some back-pay and but would take them out of the organizing drive.  Just last week, the hospital chain made an even bigger settlement offer to try to silence all three activists.

Jim, Ron, and Al all rejected UPMC’s offer and decided to move forward with their push for justice for ALL UPMC workers.  

This is a pretty bold move.  All three have been out of work for months and were offered large cash settlements right before the holidays.  But they know that what they’re doing is right and they’ve chosen to stand for justice for all UPMC workers.  Our allies at Action UNITED, a coalition of progressive organizations here in Pittsburgh have reached out to us because they are trying to bundle together some cash for Jim, Ron and Al so they can have a good Christmas even though they chose not to accept UPMC’s buy out.

Many Fight Back Pittsburgh activists and leaders have made significant donations to their fund and we invite you all to join us in donating to make sure that Jim, Ron and Al all have good holidays as they continue the fight for justice at UPMC.

You can send checks made out to SEIU Healthcare PA UPMC Workers Hardship Fund to SEIU Healthcare PA at 1500 North 2nd Street, Harrisburg, PA 17102 or you can donate online at https://hcpa.seiu.org/page/contribute/upmcworkers.

We will also be attending a holiday party to thank Jim, Ron and Al for standing tough on–come out to join us to celebrate union solidarity!

Celebrate Union Victory!  Help Fired Workers!

Wednesday, December 17th at 5:30pm
USW Headquarters.  (60 Stanwix St., in Downtown Pittsburgh).  

If you’re planning on attending, please make sure to RSVP online at https://hcpa.seiu.org/page/signup/a-night-of-celebration-and-solidarity

Happy holidays!  We’re looking forward to seeing you on Wednesday!