Union Turns up Heat on St. Barnabas

As the Tremont Tribune reported in June, CIR/SEIU Healthcare had been engaged in bitter fight with St. Barnabas Hospital, whose administration has been blocking resident doctors' attempts to unionize.

Now the union, which has 13,000 members nationwide, is drawing attention to others aspects of the hospital's history and performance. Last month they launched a blog, Examining St. Barnabas, which has shed light on executive pay; the hospital's below average patient satisfaction scores; and its failure to follow through on plans to build a 10-story health center.

The health center was supposed to replace an abandoned Elks Lodge on the Grand Concourse at East Burnside Avenue. While the building itself was demolished, the project was soon put on hold. Instead of a health center, there’s now an empty lot filled with trash and rubble. "[The] Grand Concourse Deserves Better on 100th Birthday," writes CIR. More here and here.