Emergency room nurses at the University of Alabama at Birmingham Hospital worked a little overtime, so colleagues could stage a protest at the start of their shift treating COVID-19 patients. Nurses told news outlets Sunday that they were fighting for equal compensation and described working through a surge of coronavirus patients while being understaffed. The hospital says there were about twenty medical staff involved in the protest. The demonstrators began their shift after discussing their concerns with hospital leaders. The nurses say patients were not denied care because day shift workers stayed late. Governor Kay Ivey plans to use $12 million dollars in COVID relief money to hire travelling nurses to help with the hospital staff crunch, as doctors and nurses treat coronavirus patients, most of whom are unvaccinated. The Governor’s effort, reportedly, would not address pay issues at UAB.
UAB ER nurses protest over pay and working conditions during COVID outbreak.
