As the elected leaders of tens of thousands of union health care workers who are members of the Minnesota Nurses Association and SEIU Healthcare Minnesota and Iowa, we are deeply troubled by recent statements from Dr. David Herman, CEO of Essentia Health, regarding rural health care and accessibility, including in the News Tribune’s Dec. 5 editorial (Our View: “ Health care challenges even worse in rural Minnesota ”).
While Dr. Herman speaks to the importance of equitable health outcomes, Essentia’s actions under his leadership tell a different story. Workers at Essentia’s Deer River facility have been on an unfair-labor-practice strike since Dec. 9 to address low wages and short staffing, underscoring contradictions. Instead of listening to and working with its frontline staff, Essentia is choosing to leave rural patients without critical services. In an already underserved area, staffing shortages and workforce instability make it harder for residents to access care, forcing many to travel long distances.
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Dr. Herman has said that creating “a great place to work” is critical to improving health care, yet Essentia’s actions undermine this principle. The prolonged strike at Deer River is just one example.
Additionally, Herman has refused to recognize the more than 400 advanced-practice professionals who have voted to join the Minnesota Nurses Association and instead seemed to attempt to break the union via a protracted legal battle. The staff who provide direct care to Minnesotans every day should be treated better. A truly great workplace values its employees by compensating them fairly and addressing their concerns, not by sowing division and dissatisfaction through inaction.
Essentia’s approach to each of these ongoing situations harms both its workforce and the rural communities it serves. This disconnect is perhaps most evident in Essentia’s compensation priorities. While Dr. Herman received a staggering 61% salary increase in 2020, bringing his earnings to $2.7 million, health care workers continue to fight for the fair wages, staffing levels, and respect they deserve. Redirecting resources from executive salaries to frontline compensation would demonstrate a genuine commitment to overcoming rural health care challenges. Patients depend on a dedicated, well-supported workforce, and the current misalignment sends the wrong message to both employees and the public.
Until Essentia prioritizes the well-being of its workforce, it will continue to fall short of meeting the needs of Minnesota’s rural communities and the health care professionals committed to serving them.
Health care workers continue to call on Essentia Health’s leadership to take responsibility for aligning its actions with its stated mission of equitable care. Negotiating in good faith, providing fair wages, and addressing staffing shortages are essential steps to rebuilding trust with workers and improving patient care.
Chris Rubesch is a registered nurse at Essentia Health in Duluth and is president of the Minnesota Nurses Association. Jamie Gulley of the Twin Cities is president of St. Paul-based SEIU Healthcare Minnesota and Iowa.
The Trust Project
