Employees protest layoffs, accuse UCSD Health of prioritizing ‘executive paychecks’ over health

Protesters picket at the UCSD Fitness La Jolla Campus on Thursday Photo by James Miller Times of San Diego Around healthcare workers members of their families and union organizers picketed and held a press conference at the UCSD Medical campus in La Jolla Thursday Speakers criticized UCSD Healthcare executives demanding they rescind the June layoff of more than employees including registered nurses According to emcee Michael Kennedy the chief nurse representative at UCSD Medical for the California Nurses Association layoffs cannot be blamed on budget constraints because UCSD Soundness has spent nearly million on hospital acquisitions and expansions since Of the plus employees in the UCSD Healthcare system more than are nurses according to the union In a message UCSD Wellness reported the decision to lay off club members came after a review focused on safety and operational sustainability and was very formidable We did not arrive at that decision lightly or expeditiously the announcement says Kennedy and other speakers expressed their anger at UCSD Medical executives salary increases We will not stand by while UCSD gambles with community vitality to protect executive paychecks Kennedy declared Michael Kennedy speaking Thursday at a press conference in sponsorship of healthcare employees just now laid off by UCSD Healthcare Photo by James Miller Times of San Diego UC System President Michael Drake reported June that all UC faculty and staff who are not union members would receive the salary increase According to constituents payroll figures UCSD Robustness CEO Patty Maysent received more than million dollars in compensation in The employees who were laid off had an average salary of according to Candy Stangler a former nursing assistant who worked in a postpartum unit Stangler is pregnant and commented she unveiled out she was laid off during her third trimester appointment Two days later she no longer had insurance I m now due in days and I don t know how I m going to pay for the birth of my baby Stangler noted Nurse Tiffany Duong announced she was speaking on behalf of nurses at UCSD Healthcare s Hillcrest location who work with patients undergoing surgery According to Duong these nurses workload has at least doubled since all of Hillcrest s nurse navigators were laid off She commented nurse navigators are responsible for calling patients preparing them for surgery and explaining medications Without them Duong declared it has taken longer getting patients into surgery That process should not be rushed Duong stated There s a substantial danger for error and a likely for person harm