Approximately 400 UB resident physicians, represented by the Union of American Physicians and Dentists (UAPD), went on a four-day strike at the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus (BNMC) last week to demand financial transparency and an equitable labor contract from their employer, University Medical Resident Services P.C. (UMRS), and the university.
The physicians authorized the strike last month, expecting over 800 physicians to strike over UMRS’ “bargaining in bad faith” during the year-long labor contract negotiations to increase salaries, establish supplemental funds and switch to a non-deductible health insurance plan.
Negotiations fail to reach agreement before strike
A week before the strike, UMRS submitted a proposal to the physicians that would increase residents’ salaries by 6.6% to 10.85%, stating that it was “virtually the same as was proposed by the union” in an email to The Spectrum. It rejected the UAPD’s bid to use a no-cost deductible health insurance, establish a retirement plan and create a supplemental fund for work-related expenses.
Physicians and residents countered with their own proposal last Sunday that included a $15 million increase in salaries over three years. In a previous statement to The Spectrum, UMRS said the counterproposal was “last minute” and “not fiscally responsible.”
Dr. Amy Beattie, who sat down at the bargaining table, said UMRS’ response “twisted their efforts.”
“I did not think they would stoop that low, because that is not the narrative at all. That is so false,” Dr. Beattie — a fourth-year psychiatry resident — said. “For them to think that was fiscally irresponsible, to me, means that they had never intended to give us any benefits at all, and for them to even offer average salary of the region, it’s like trying to pull diamonds out of coal, like they just make it so hard.”
Frustrations recently amplified due to lack of fiscal transparency and support
During last Wednesday’s press conference, physicians demanded fiscal transparency from UMRS’ stakeholders, including UB’s Jacobs School of Medicine (JSMBS).
Dr. Beattie said that when the union started bargaining, they asked for contracts UMRS and its stakeholders have with the state and federal governments that detail how much money the stakeholders receive for their programs, but said that UMRS has “delayed and delayed.”
“Somebody knows the numbers,” Dr. Beattie said.
Second year internal medicine and pediatrics resident Dr. Amanda Duggan said that she had to use all of her sick time and one half of vacation time to deal with colon cancer early on in her residency.
She said that the current environment is “not supportive.”
“Coming back to work after that experience and being told that I was gonna have good support and they were going to give me everything that I needed, and then turning around and being told the very first time I needed time off, it was gonna be PTO,” Dr. Duggan said.
In an email The Spectrum obtained a copy of, the Buffalo VA Medical Center informed their residents that they are “prohibited from going on strike” as the residents are “Federal employees.” The email said that residents who participate in the strike are “subject to VA disciplinary action and may risk imprisonment, fine, loss of employment, and/or debarment from future Federal employment.”
“I think it’s just important to note that many residents were planning to strike in addition to the 400+ who did that were at the VA but were told last minute there would be consequences including possible imprisonment if we did,” Dr. Paige Guy — a first year internal medicine resident —- wrote in a message to The Spectrum. “They cited this as a federal law for federal employees, even though we don’t get any federal benefits (such as parking, we don’t even get employee parking at the VA).”
The Buffalo VA Medical Center declined to comment to The Spectrum regarding this.
Many residents, including Dr. Hillary Jaramillo, are concerned for their future.
“We are spending three plus years [in residency], we should have the option to invest in our retirement, whatever little that may be,” Dr. Jaramillo, a first-year family medicine resident, said. “I didn’t even notice until coming to the program that there is no retirement plan.”
Bargaining sessions remain at standstill after strike
In a statement to The Spectrum, UMRS said that it has made “substantial, responsible offers to the residents and fellows and continues to negotiate in good faith” and that it will not be “negotiating through the media, analyzing negotiating positions in a public manner or making negative statements about any entity or individual.”
“We are committed to a process that will bring the contract negotiation to a successful and mutually agreed upon conclusion,” the statement reads. “We will continue to strive for a fair and equitable resolution for all that supports the delivery of excellent medical care in Western New York.”
The physicians and UMRS had their most recent negotiation yesterday, which continues to make slow progress.
UB physicians’ labor attorney Robert Boreanaz said that the union has requested Federal Mediation and Conciliation Services (FMCS) — an independent, government agency — to mediate further labor contract negotiations.
“UMRS is in ‘delaying’ mode and is not bargaining fairly,” Boreanaz said.
Both parties must consent for the agency to intervene.
In a statement to The Spectrum, UMRS said that UAPD “failed to provide a written response to the latest salary proposal so that salary negotiations could proceed.”
“UMRS remains hopeful that UAPD will provide a written response to the Aug. 26 salary proposal, which will allow the negotiations to resume and build upon the progress made prior to the strike,” the statement reads.
The next bargaining session between the physicians and UMRS will take place next Tuesday, Sept. 17.
This article was corrected to accurately reflect the number of physicians who went on strike from Sept. 2-6. It was also updated to correct Dr. Amanda Duggan’s post-graduate year and last name. The Spectrum regrets both errors.
This article was updated to include the details of an email from the Buffalo VA Medical Center.
Mylien Lai contributed to the reporting of this article.
The news desk can be reached at news@ubspectrum.com
