Worcester Business Journal

wbjournal.com | September 13, 2021 | Worcester Business Journal 41 Congress must pass infrastructure bill V I E W P O I N T E D I T O R I A L W ith billions of dollars of federal relief autho- rized over the past 18 months, and more Americans receiving vaccinations each day, our economy is gradually inching closer to recovery. However, there is more le to do. e New England Council believes passing a robust infrastruc- ture package will help meet numer- ous and oen long-standing unmet demands, and will help our region's businesses remain competitive and our residents to thrive. As New Englanders, we know all too well the infrastructure challenges our region faces. Too many of our bridges are structurally deficient and yearly increases in the number of vehicles and drivers has put more stress on our road- ways. A growing number of residents across our region are looking to transit to provide a safe, affordable, and reliable means of transportation. Besides the need to meet new requirements for a growing region, our aging water systems – some approaching or surpassing a century old – need attention. And the pandemic has shown that broadband is a critical need for New England to expand telework, telehealth, and remote learning options. Just months ago, a bipartisan group of senators and President Joe Biden agreed upon a bold infrastructure framework. is five-year deal would fund traditional in- frastructure: roads, bridges, rail, transit, ports & airports, and water systems. In addition, the deal called for new infrastructure spending, which would be allocated toward an expanded list of core infrastructure such as broadband, resiliency, and electric vehicle networks. e hard work of the U.S. Senate paid off: On Aug. 10, this legislation – the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act – was adopted by a bipartisan vote of 69 to 30. Every senator from New England voted in favor. Now, the bill is before the U.S. House of Representatives, and a vote on the proposal is slated before the end of this month. Not since the Eisenhower Administration has Congress had such an opportunity to advance a package so boldly affecting infrastructure in a manner to benefit virtually every individual across the nation. e New England Council believes this landmark legislation would have a tremendous impact on our region by addressing many of the challenges we face, while creating new jobs and spur- ring economic growth. We are grateful to the Senate, and we urge the House to follow suit as soon as possible. James T. Brett is president & CEO of e New England Council, a regional alliance of businesses dedicated to sup- porting economic growth in New England. L abor unions have been an integral part of the American economy for a long time, and most of our modern worker protections are the result of union influence. Today, as worker wages have stagnated and the gap between the average worker's pay and the CEO's has continued to grow out of proportion, unions should have a vital role. Yet, a closer look at the Massachusetts Nurses Associa- tion union strike at Saint Vincent Hospital in Worcester over the past six months (and counting) serves as an example of why unions continue to struggle. By most measures we outside of the fracas can see, the strike is a failure. And, we mean a failure on both sides. Maybe the negotiations were civil at the bargain- ing table, but both sides came out of that room trading barbs and issuing inflammatory press releases. From the MNA side, the headline in the fight was about patient- to-nurse ratios in key areas of the hospital – a years- long battle the union is having with all Massachusetts hospitals. But did the strike benefit the union and its negotiating stance more than its members out on the picket lines? Close to 700 nurses just spent the better part of six months walking outside a hospital during a pandemic, when their services were sorely needed inside. Yes, workers have the right to strike, but this one should never have been allowed to drag on for so long. Mediation and a settlement should have been required, or imposed if necessary, leaving any work stoppage at closer to one month, not a record-breaking six-plus months. Ultimately, no one was better off as a result of the strike. e hospital? No. An $18-billion corporation with stockholders to please – Saint Vincent's parent Tenet Healthcare of Dallas – is never going to be cast as the BY JAMES T. BRETT Special to the Worcester Business Journal The above Editorial is the opinion of the WBJ Editorial Board. The Viewpoint column, the A Thousand Words cartoon, and the Word from the Web commentary represent the opinions of their authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of WBJ or its staff. WBJ welcomes letters to the editor and commentary submissions. Send them to bkane@wbjournal.com. A T H O U SA N D WO R D S B Y R A M Ó N L . S A N D O V A L e Saint Vincent Hospital strike has no winners, only losers James T. Brett W good guy. e hospital absorbed the increased cost of replacement nurses, as well as a reduction in capacity and income – and it was forced to pay for more than $3 million in police details to safeguard the strikers, incoming patients, and employees. e inevitable sparring, which is expected in high stakes negotiations, turned uglier by the month, and served more to weak- en the hospital's position than strengthen it. e same is true for the union: A lot of cheap shots were thrown around in the news, which seemed to harden positions, not make a compromise easier to achieve. e patients? No. While the hospital has filled in nursing positions with replacements, it's hard to imagine they could match the expertise and efficiency of the existing staff. e hospital was forced to close 80 inpatient beds at the end of July, further reducing services essential to the community. Striking nurses? No. Certainly they received pay raises and other benefits during the negotiations, but the ultimate staffing ratio language doesn't appear to have produced the win they were looking for. Many nurses have lost their shis, while others may lose their jobs altogether if this strike is not brought to a swi close. As MNA and Tenet limp toward the finish line, a key takeaway is when two sides trade in an increasingly vitriolic battle of words, it becomes awfully hard to back off and take a fresh look. Resentments set in, jaws clench, and the goodwill needed to make a fair deal dissipates. In a community like Worcester where the norm is to work hard at putting egos aside and achieve the com- mon good with a minimum of political-point scoring, this long strike was a great disappointment. We hope the two sides can finally wrap up this ugly chapter, join hands, and work again for the common good. W

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