Congressman Brian Higgins (NY-26) announced the approval of the VA Employee Fairness Act (H.R.1948). Cosponsored by Higgins, the bill will expand collective bargaining rights for healthcare professionals at the Veterans Health Administration and improve care at VA hospitals across the country.
Video: https://youtu.be/iYEUFbbHFTY
Speaking on the House floor in support of the bill, Higgins stated in part, “We rely on the work of dedicated healthcare professionals to care for veterans who risked their lives for our country. Yet our laws do not provide adequate voice for those workers to ensure care is of the highest quality. The COVID-19 pandemic showed why that voice is necessary. This bill changes that by granting all VA healthcare providers the same collective bargaining rights. It means that health care workers can have a greater say in protecting patients, ensuring clinical competence, and setting wages and benefits.”
Like many hospitals during the pandemic, when COVID-19 Omicron variant cases were soaring last year in Western New York the Buffalo VA Medical Center saw significant staffing shortages. As a result, registered nurses began seeing 20-hour shifts and unsafe staffing ratios. Their representing union, National Nurses United, sought to file grievances to protect nurses and patients alike.
Under the current law, the VA can broadly regulate hours and conditions of employment for registered nurses, physicians, dentists, and physician assistants. It exempts these health care providers from collective bargaining rights and prevents them from raising grievances about professional training and safe patient handling policies. It also prevents negotiations for competitive pay that will attract top tier health care workers at VA medical centers.
The VA Employee Fairness Act will remove these restrictions, allowing full collective bargaining rights for about 100,000 frontline healthcare workers, including more than 350 nurses at the Buffalo VA Medical Center. It gives health care professionals like registered nurses, physicians, dentists, and physician assistants the same rights as the other federal employees they work alongside to negotiate over routine workplace issues such as scheduling, assignments, and pay. Guaranteeing these healthcare providers the same bargaining rights as their colleagues will improve workplace conditions and ultimately benefit our nation’s veterans and families under VA care.
With 39,000 provider vacancies across the VA healthcare system, this legislation will allow VA to recruit and retain the best medical professionals to care for our nation’s veterans and their families.
The bill is supported by The White House, American Legion, Vietnam Veterans of America, AFL-CIO, American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), and National Nurses United. Now approved by the House, the measure will move to the Senate for consideration.
