The backstory.
About 200 Occupiers have taken over a hotel slated for demolition. The reason it is being demolished is so a hospital can be built. Why would Occupiers object to a hospital being built?
When that hospital is for the 1%.
They will not take patients without insurance. also this hospital will exclusively hire non-union employees keeping wages low for hard working employees.
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Some backstory on the company putting the hospital in. Basically this is what covers most of the communities objections to the hospital. There is much much more information on the predatory nature of this "health care" company.
“We wonder if Sutter/CPMC will invest in the long-term health of this neighborhood by agreeing to strong First Source arrangements for the permanent jobs. We want a percentage of the permanent jobs. We know that the hospital will hire from all over the City and region—but they are coming to our neighborhood so we need to be hired. Without a binding agreement we fear our communities will be left out in the cold. We need to be chipped in not locked out. We don’t need charity, we need jobs and opportunities,” stated residential hotel tenant Clifton Smith of the Community Housing Organizing Project.
Over 200 people showed up to hear testimony from workers and community members
Nurses spoke about the connection between patient care, labor rights and union representation. Eileen Prendiville, a Registered Nurse at the CPMC’s California Campus, stated “I work at the California Campus. It has been 3½ years since our contract expired. CPMC from the very begin did not bargain in good faith. We are just asking for the same contract standards that nurses and other bay area hospitals have previously agreed to. It is not easy to be a patient advocate without a union to protect us. A unionized nurse is much more likely to speak up about unsafe staffing for example. Without union protection there is the very real fear of retaliation by the employer and CPMC has already targeted union activist with trivial disciplinary actions. CPMC routinely ignores our contracts, hands out anti-union information to its new nurses in the new employee package and makes every attempt to divide us.”
Board member Assemblyman Tom Ammiano said, “If it weren’t for the commitment, the dedication of the people who work there, the caregivers, the health providers, the nurses, the doctors, and the rest of the personnel, that building (St. Luke’s) would be worthless and that is what they are saying to you. They are saying that you are worthless that you are expendable well it ain’t going to happen and I promise on the state level to keep their feet to the fire.”
Fri Jan 20, 2012 at 10:10 PM PT:
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Fri Jan 20, 2012 at 10:23 PM PT: Police attacking protesters earlier in the day: