St. Barnabas Residents Continue to Fight for Recognition

The resident physicians at St. Barnabas Hospital in the Bronx held a secret ballot election on June 18 on whether to join CIR.  Although the hospital has taken action to delay recognition of the union and it could be months until the votes are counted, residents said those who came out to vote were overwhelmingly in support of joining the Committee of Interns and Residents.   

“Initially when we got involved in CIR, we thought we would have a long way to go, and it has been a long fight,” said St. Barnabas resident Dr. Bharat Subba after the election in June. “Today we voted. It’s such a good feeling to finally have an election, and I’m confident we’ll have a CIR chapter.”  

St. Barnabas is home to 280 medical and dental residents, who came together and decided to form a union when the hospital announced last fall that it would no longer cover health care costs for “non-union employees.” For years, residents at St. Barnabas have felt that they could greatly improve patient care by having a stronger voice in the hospital.  

Nearly 90 percent of the resident physicians on staff signed a petition in January asking the hospital to recognize the Committee of Interns and Residents as their exclusive bargaining agent.  

The hospital brought a challenge before the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), arguing that residents are students, and not employees.  After the NLRB ruled in favor of the residents, the hospital decided to appeal that decision, so the residents are in limbo until the Board decides whether it will hear the case again.

The physicians have shared their stories with several local elected officials, community organizations and clergy members. All expressed their support for the residents’ choice to have a union.  At a press conference near the hospital, Assemblyman Jose Rivera called on the hospital to drop its appeal of the NLRB decision.  

“The hospital staff deserves to be happy and also get the services that they deserve,” Rivera said. “ A staff that is demoralized is not good your health!  And I believe we all want to be healthy.”