A Washington DC hospital’s decision to fire 21 hospital employees-15 of whom were nurses-for missing work during the blizzards that occurred between Feb. 5 and Feb. 11 has drawn attention from Nurses United of the National Capital Region and the American Nurses Association (ANA), reports Joe Cantlupe, for HealthLeaders Media.
The dismissals at Washington Hospital Center, the largest private nonprofit hospital in the DC area, have generated widespread controversy. Nurses United of the National Capital Region has filed a grievance which in part points to the hospital’s policy that states employees would not be dismissed during a declared emergency. More than 40 inches of snow fell during that week, and hospital officials provided transportation for nurses, and alerted staff members that they may need to stay overnight at the hospital, according to HealthLeaders Media.
The ANA stated that it is unheard of for a hospital to fire nurses for failing to report to work because of prohibitive weather conditions. An ANA official described the hospital’s actions as “quite damaging to the morale of nurses.”
What do you think? Have you had to travel to work during a bad storm? Let us know what you think by posting a comment below.
March 5th, 2010 at 9:11 pm
It would seem to me that in a state of declared emergency, the nurses made a wise decision. I would rather see a hospital short staffed for a short time, rather a nurse end up in the hospital due to an accident. This kind of behavior just shows the type alligence hospital management has to its over worked and I’m sure under paid staff.
March 6th, 2010 at 9:48 am
It seems to me that if nurses could not get in due to weather, then nurses would not have been able to get home either. In my LTC buildings, all staff members were happy to stay or come in early, to provide care to our residents! It was wrong for these nurses to be fired and yes, staff members have to be treated right to build allegiance from their staff.
March 8th, 2010 at 2:50 am
In my hospital we come in to town the night before and either stay at the facility or at one of the local motels. Every effort possible is made to work together to care for the patients. However, we are use to snow and actually are expected to be there even if a “state of emergency” has been declared.
March 8th, 2010 at 3:13 am
this is terrible!!!! i live on the east coast and the weather was hazardous! when it comes to ones life, ones employer should not expect an employee to become a statistic! a state of emergency was declared, and travel on the highways was strictly prohibited-subject to fines. in this case, did the managers come in and help relieve overworked staff?
March 8th, 2010 at 7:16 am
For 16 years I worked at a hospital 30 miles away and often made it into work during bad weather where others that lived closer couldn’t but they lived in rural areas and I had a pretty straight shot in I only called once. I did spend the night at the hospital 2-3 times when the snow hit while I was at work. It’s easy to say just come in early but you don’t always know that it’s coming or had bad it really will be. The hospital would send vehicles out to pick people up but would never come get me because I live in another state though closer then some they would pick up. If a hospital could afford to fire that many nurses at once they must of somehoe been over staffed so now they are paying overtime I guess. They were looking for an excuse.
March 8th, 2010 at 8:07 am
I worked in Greenville, South Carolina several years ago and they had a policy that could lead to hospital staff being fired for not coming in during bad weather. And they did disipline and fire staff for this. The bottom line here is patient safety. If it were safe to staff at the levels that occur during these situations we would always be staffed at those levels. Working at a hospital is different than working at Walmart. By the way if you are a hospital worker going to work it is ok to travel when the roads are closed.
It is unfair to judge the actions of the hospital in DC if you were not there and don’t know the full reasons for the decisions that were made by management, we only have the information from the press and I am sure that is not the whole story.
March 10th, 2010 at 2:23 pm
These were extenuating circumstances. It is likely some of these nurses also were responsible for families (in power outages) that could not manage without them. Our hospital makes efforts to provide on site sleep arrangements for those who would come in before the storm and plan to stay as well as offereing the same for staff who could not leave due to driving conditions/no public transport etc. Sounds like this hospital did not do a very good job of “planning ahead” (even with plenty of warning) and they have certainly alientated many nurses, offended even more of us and likely committed a “public relations” disaster for themselves. But, there may be more to this story than meets the eye.
August 20th, 2010 at 6:44 pm
I worked in the south once and was told during orientation that should there be a winter storm and the roads were closed we were expected to still be at work. I asked how we were expected to get there if the raods were closed but no one had a suitable reply - simply that you could be fired if you didn’t make it in. I found this rather ridiculous but fortunately it was never tested.
I live in a place now where winter weather is severe - 30, -40, -50 with snow, wind chills and the works. If there is a winter weather warning and severe storm or any other natural disaster it is expected that you care for yourself and your family first before offering up yourself to the workplace. A very different but reasonable attitude
February 21st, 2011 at 5:47 pm
RE: Mary Frances
I don’t care if I have the right to be on the road “when it is closed” It is closed for a reason, when a snow emergency has been issued, and they are saying that driving is HAZERDOUS, and DANGEROUS. I am not going to be out on the road. No job is worth my life. Working at a hospital is no different than working anywhere else, people in all walks of life, in all sorts of positions, (including Walmart employees) are proud of the job they do and the service they provide to other people. So it is OK for a Walmart employee to call off work for dangerous road conditions but not for nurses? That is absurd.
March 3rd, 2011 at 11:44 pm
RE: Mary Frances
I work in an area of hurricanes. We are expected to come to work and stay if hospital deems necessary. Well I went into work. Now my family left at home are all dead. I will never go in during a hurrican or any “emergency” again. My family was more impartant tome than all of the patients in the hospital put together. I would no longer leave my dogs for anthing my employer deemed an emergency. I can never forgive myself even if it meant I died with them at least I wouldn’t be on all the psych drugs I am now and suicidal most of the time. You need to live on this planet or get off.