1,000 UPMC nurses sign open letter urging hiring, raises, more time off

Nurse Kelly Poholsky has worked at UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital for 36 years.

All that time, she has felt the hospital in Pittsburgh’s Oakland neighborhood needed more nurses.

Poholsky, 61, of Penn Township is one of more than 1,000 nurses throughout the sprawling UPMC network who have signed an open letter to the health care giant’s executives calling for better staffing, pay raises to encourage experienced nurses to stay on the job and additional paid time off for nurses.

The petition comes as Pennsylvania is expected to see a shortfall of more than 20,000 nurses by 2026, according to SEIU Healthcare. The union, which is publicizing the letter campaign, said it has been signed by both unionized nurses and non-unionized nurses such as Poholsky.

Adding nurses and improving conditions to retain them will benefit patients, Poholsky said.

When experienced nurses leave because they feel they’re underpaid or burned out, newer nurses don’t have as many mentors to show them the ropes and help them improve, she added.

That concern — paired with recent layoffs and frustration among staff — prompted nurses to circulate the letter.

“It’s not only affecting us as employees, but our patients are also affected by this,” Poholsky said. “We don’t have the time to spend with them like they need.”

The letter claims workers are discouraged from discussing how much they make. Nurses said many owe money for using their health insurance, and they often cannot use their paid time off.

Petitioners are asking UPMC leadership to commit to meeting transparent staffing standards, eliminating salary caps for experienced nurses, investing in longevity bonuses and retention raises to reward experienced workers, increasing salaries more quickly and providing more paid time off, parental leave and health care benefits.

The nurses also are requesting a full public audit of executive expenses and more flexible working schedules. They are calling on UPMC to have at least 10% of its board of directors be front line registered nurses.

UPMC, a $28 billion health system with more than 100,000 employees, did not respond to TribLive questions about the nurses’ demands.

Instead, Gloria Kreps, a UPMC spokesperson, provided information about future raises for its nurses.

Starting compensation for nurses with bachelor’s degrees in UPMC’s urban hospitals — including for all bedside nurses in Pittsburgh hospitals — will jump to $52.17 per hour by 2027, which is a 20% bump, Kreps said.

Nurses without a bachelor’s degree will earn up to $50.42 hourly by 2027.

All 23,000 registered nurses throughout the health care system will receive similar percentage increases, according to Kreps.

Nurses at UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital recently signed a contract that will make it the first hospital in the health system to start nurses’ pay at more than $40 per hour.

Addressing the issues raised in the petition is increasingly important, said Naomi Edwards, 38, of Swissvale, who for the past six years has worked at UPMC Montefiore and Presbyterian hospitals.

“We have more sick people,” Edwards said. “We have an aging population.”