Whatever happened to those dear beloved nurse angels? Hospitals would like to know, especially when faced with angels who have been unionized.

Sutter facilities in the San Francisco Bay Area may soon be faced with a strike, but it seems a little unclear what the strike is about, or how serious the infractions are.

From the MercuryNews.com:

A strike could come as soon as the middle of the month for the nurses, who are represented by the California Nurses Association. The union and management have failed to reach an agreement in contract negotiations that began in May. The dispute has already resulted in two strikes, each lasting two days, in October and December.

The nurses say the stalemate is not about salaries, but the issues of patient care, under-staffing and their health and retirement benefits. The nurses described a “hostile” bargaining attitude by Sutter Health, and expect to approve the strike vote.

In general, hospitals are not known for being benevolent employers and their attitude towards nurses is usually deplorable. Nurses are a service, not people, and its something that’s thrown in with the laundry, dietary service, and housekeeping. In fact, a nurse can double for all of those.

But in this case, I’ve seen a few differing reports about the strike, so I don’t have an opinion on it at the moment. Perhaps as the story unfolds…