Catholic Bishops, Health Providers, Unions Cooperate to Support Workers’ Rights
When Bishop Martino busted the union which had represented Catholic school teachers in the Diocese of Scranton, there was an immediate outcry, not only from the teachers, but from all who understood that the Bishop’s actions were contrary to established Catholic social teachings and basic human rights. On June 22, The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) published “Respecting the Just Rights of Workers: Guidance and Options for Catholic Health Care and Unions.” Not only is this a new step forward for workers at Catholic health facilities: a set of principles to ensure that workers have a fair process to bargain for a better life, but it reaffirms why what Bishop Martino has done to his own employees is so egregiously wrong.
In the USCCB publication, in cooperation with Catholic health care providers and the union movement, the Bishops have laid out guidelines for Catholic health care ministries across the country, and by extension, for all who work for the Catholic Church. These guidelines, and the process that produced them, are an encouraging model of cooperation and collaboration in protecting workers’ freedom to form unions and bargain.
The new guidelines cover seven principles for employers when workers seek a union: Respect; Access to information; Truthful communication; Pressure-free environment; Expeditious process; Honoring employee decisions; and Meaningful enforcement of these principles.
Taken together, the guidelines will ensure that Catholic employers drop their aggressive tactics in fighting unions, such as delays, one-on-one meetings, captive audience sessions, and threats and intimidations. The guidelines envision a local agreement that would be enforceable through an agreed-upon neutral party.
Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, former archbishop of Washington, who chaired the three-way dialogue said, “Catholic social teaching can and should guide relationships between management and labor. It should be up to workers to decide through a fair process whether to be represented by a union….we want to ensure that workers make these choices freely and fairly.”
Health care is a fundamental social good, McCarrick said—a human right. Catholic hospitals and health ministries need to provide health care consistently with Catholic values and teachings on the dignity of workers, he said.
Because of their willingness to engage in dialogue, the bishops and the leaders of Catholic health care displayed real courage and leadership and have set an example for all to follow. That coupled with the fact that Pope Benedict XVI recently noted that Catholic social teachings are strongly supportive of workers’ freedom to form unions and recognized the importance of workers’ rights in a modern economy. Unfortunately, recent studies show the freedom to form a union is at risk from a legal climate that allows management harassment and intimidation. The principles put forward by the Catholic bishops are an important response to these trends in the workplace.
Bishop Martino has in the past proclaimed that the rest of the US bishops don’t speak for him. Will he continue to act in the rogue fashion he has so far chosen, or will this latest development show him the path back to the Catholic mainstream?
In the USCCB publication, in cooperation with Catholic health care providers and the union movement, the Bishops have laid out guidelines for Catholic health care ministries across the country, and by extension, for all who work for the Catholic Church. These guidelines, and the process that produced them, are an encouraging model of cooperation and collaboration in protecting workers’ freedom to form unions and bargain.
The new guidelines cover seven principles for employers when workers seek a union: Respect; Access to information; Truthful communication; Pressure-free environment; Expeditious process; Honoring employee decisions; and Meaningful enforcement of these principles.
Taken together, the guidelines will ensure that Catholic employers drop their aggressive tactics in fighting unions, such as delays, one-on-one meetings, captive audience sessions, and threats and intimidations. The guidelines envision a local agreement that would be enforceable through an agreed-upon neutral party.
Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, former archbishop of Washington, who chaired the three-way dialogue said, “Catholic social teaching can and should guide relationships between management and labor. It should be up to workers to decide through a fair process whether to be represented by a union….we want to ensure that workers make these choices freely and fairly.”
Health care is a fundamental social good, McCarrick said—a human right. Catholic hospitals and health ministries need to provide health care consistently with Catholic values and teachings on the dignity of workers, he said.
Because of their willingness to engage in dialogue, the bishops and the leaders of Catholic health care displayed real courage and leadership and have set an example for all to follow. That coupled with the fact that Pope Benedict XVI recently noted that Catholic social teachings are strongly supportive of workers’ freedom to form unions and recognized the importance of workers’ rights in a modern economy. Unfortunately, recent studies show the freedom to form a union is at risk from a legal climate that allows management harassment and intimidation. The principles put forward by the Catholic bishops are an important response to these trends in the workplace.
Bishop Martino has in the past proclaimed that the rest of the US bishops don’t speak for him. Will he continue to act in the rogue fashion he has so far chosen, or will this latest development show him the path back to the Catholic mainstream?
posted by SDACT at
11:26 AM
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