Three employees at Rogers Behavioral Health Clinic in West Allis were fired after they attempted to form a union, according to one of the former employees.Stephani Lohman, who worked as a nurse practitioner at the clinic for a year, said she lost her job on Monday due to her involvement in unionization efforts.”Oh, I thought, I’m about to get fired for forming a union,” Lohman said.Lohman explained that she and her coworkers delivered their union petition last Wednesday, and by the following Monday, three of them were fired.”Last week Wednesday, we delivered our petition union politely and courteously as we had planned, and then the following Monday, three of us were fired,” Lohman said.She noted that in September, the workload at the clinic had noticeably increased, almost tripling.”Right before I started at Rogers, maybe four to six patients, and for a case load, so you can kind of imagine a therapist is managing the care, now they might have up to 16,” Lohman said.This increase in workload led to a reduction in the quality of services provided to patients, which Lohman said was a catalyst for taking action.”A reduction in the kind of services patients were receiving, which means a reduction in the quality of service,” Lohman said.In October, Lohman and two coworkers decided to lead the charge in forming a union, reaching out to the National Union of Health Care Workers, which was already working with Rogers’ office in California. The support was overwhelming.”We decided as a group that we ask all of our coworkers to sign a petition and form a union, if we had a supermajority of 65 to 70 percent, was our goal, and then pretty quickly, we learned we were going to far surpass our goal,” Lohman said.A total of 36 mental health professionals signed from the Rogers Madison location, and 63 at West Allis. However, Lohman said that this week, three coworkers, including herself, were fired.The National Union of Health Care Workers issued a statement calling the firings illegal and said, “NUHW has filed charges against Rogers over the firings, demanding that workers get their jobs back.”Rogers Behavioral Health also released a statement acknowledging the recent filing of a petition at their Madison and West Allis clinic locations and stated they are working closely with the National Labor Relations Board on the next steps.They added that they do not comment on personnel matters.
MILWAUKEE —
Three employees at Rogers Behavioral Health Clinic in West Allis were fired after they attempted to form a union, according to one of the former employees.
Stephani Lohman, who worked as a nurse practitioner at the clinic for a year, said she lost her job on Monday due to her involvement in unionization efforts.
“Oh, I thought, I’m about to get fired for forming a union,” Lohman said.
Lohman explained that she and her coworkers delivered their union petition last Wednesday, and by the following Monday, three of them were fired.
“Last week Wednesday, we delivered our petition union politely and courteously as we had planned, and then the following Monday, three of us were fired,” Lohman said.
She noted that in September, the workload at the clinic had noticeably increased, almost tripling.
“Right before I started at Rogers, maybe four to six patients, and for a case load, so you can kind of imagine a therapist is managing the care, now they might have up to 16,” Lohman said.
This increase in workload led to a reduction in the quality of services provided to patients, which Lohman said was a catalyst for taking action.
“A reduction in the kind of services patients were receiving, which means a reduction in the quality of service,” Lohman said.
In October, Lohman and two coworkers decided to lead the charge in forming a union, reaching out to the National Union of Health Care Workers, which was already working with Rogers’ office in California. The support was overwhelming.
“We decided as a group that we ask all of our coworkers to sign a petition and form a union, if we had a supermajority of 65 to 70 percent, was our goal, and then pretty quickly, we learned we were going to far surpass our goal,” Lohman said.
A total of 36 mental health professionals signed from the Rogers Madison location, and 63 at West Allis. However, Lohman said that this week, three coworkers, including herself, were fired.
The National Union of Health Care Workers issued a statement calling the firings illegal and said, “NUHW has filed charges against Rogers over the firings, demanding that workers get their jobs back.”
Rogers Behavioral Health also released a statement acknowledging the recent filing of a petition at their Madison and West Allis clinic locations and stated they are working closely with the National Labor Relations Board on the next steps.
They added that they do not comment on personnel matters.