Ian Thomas – 2/19/09

This page was last updated on February 22, 2009.

Workers punished while execs get paid; Ian Thomas; Beaver County Times; February 19, 2009.

Below is a detailed critique of the letter.

“With regard to the unpaid staff of the former Aliquippa Hospital, I would like to express my gratitude for their years of service.

“In addition to all they have given the community over the years, it was their care that stabilized my grandmother’s health after a surgery this past summer.”

[RWC] The employees didn’t “give” the community anything. They were paid for their work.

As Mr. Thomas, my family was also well served by Aliquippa Hospital going back to the early 1960s. Unfortunately, we stopped going there in 2007/2008 because invariably we’d get transferred to The Medical Center (Brighton Township).

“I cannot fathom the frustration the unpaid workers, the workers responsible for the hospital’s day-to-day operation for all those years, must feel.

“Of course, in keeping with the tone of the rest of the country, the executives managed to find the money to pay themselves. It is another sad example of the diminishing power of the working class, both in our area and nationwide.”

[RWC] “[T]he executives managed to find the money to pay themselves.” Not true. Once in bankruptcy, all disbursements are under the control of the presiding judge with recommendations made by secured creditors having the most weight.

“The argument that the economy is in bad shape all over doesn’t hold when those who should be feeling the heat the most, the executives who mismanaged their responsibilities, are instead rewarded for their incompetence.”

[RWC] I believe we have some conclusion jumping on the part of Mr. Thomas. Mr. Thomas claims “the executives … mismanaged their responsibilities” and were incompetent. I don’t know about Mr. Thomas, but I don’t have any info to give an opinion one way or another. As a reminder, Aliquippa Hospital has been in trouble for many years with a variety of owners and management. It’s possible a small “full service” hospital like Aliquippa used to be isn’t viable today with larger hospitals like The Medical Center and Sewickley in “relatively” close proximity. As another reminder, that’s why the hospitals in Beaver Falls, New Brighton, and Rochester were merged to form The Medical Center in the 1970s or early 1980s.

Ignoring the class warfare language of the letter, I agree with Mr. Thomas that it’s wrong the employees are left hanging. They had every right to expect to be paid in a timely fashion for their work.

Finally, note Mr. Thomas never mentions the employees’ labor union management. I thought one of the roles of labor union management (in this case SEIU) was to guard against situations like this. Mr. Thomas never mentions SEIU management may have failed its members for allowing them to be put in this position.