After years of organizing, medical fellows and residents at Mass General Brigham hospitals have voted in favor of unionization. Over 2,000 employees will join the national Committee of Interns and Residents, a part of the Service Employees International Union.
The vote result of 1,215 to 412 was announced Thursday following a week of in-person voting at Mass General Brigham's hospital campuses. The results still need to be cerified by the National Labor Relations Board.
Sascha Murillo, a third-year internal medicine resident at Mass General Hospital, who is part of the organizing committee for the MGB Housestaff Union, said it was important not just for her and her colleagues, but for patients as well, to think about a different way of delivering healthcare.
"And it felt like unionizing was one way to really give us agency over our work and also impact the healthcare system as a whole," she said.
Murillo said there are a number of issues the union is looking forward to addressing, including cost of living.
"We hear that from all of the housestaff, they are burdened with debt from medical school and they're living in one of the most expensive cities in the country and, you know, really struggling to get by. ... I think that's probably one of the top priorities that we want to make sure is enshrined in our contract," Murillo said.
Medical school graduates who begin their first year of residency at Mass General Brigham this summer will earn a salary of $78,540, according to hospital system's salary scale, in addition to a newly announced $10,000 annual stipend meant to assist with costs of living starting with the 2023-24 academic year. Pay increases about $4,000 for each subsequent year of training.
In a statement, Paul Anderson, interim chief academic officer at Mass General Brigham, said they recognize the vital importance of the partnership between faculty and trainees in their institutions.
"While we are disappointed with the outcome, this election is part of a continuing national trend among medical trainees seeking collective bargaining through union representation," he said. "Moving forward, our mission remains unchanged. We will continue to deliver on our promise of providing a world-class medical education experience, working within the parameters that will be established by the collective bargaining process.”
According to CIR-SEIU, Mass General Brigham will be the twelfth residency program to join the union since 2019.
In a statement, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu expressed her support for the unionization efforts.
"For Boston to be a strong and growing home for working families, we need a strong and growing labor movement," Wu said. "Congratulations to the MGB interns, residents, and fellows on their hard-won victory for voice and dignity on the job."
