Bannister House workers demanding fair contract from Centers

Workers at the Bannister House nursing home voted unanimously to reject Centers Health Care’s contract proposal and authorized a strike on December 28. Workers say that the nursing home chain is trying to drive down compensation for existing jobs. Today workers and allies held an informational picket outside Bannister House.

“These workers are fighting for a fair shake,” said Mike Araujo of RI Jobs With Justice, “not just for themselves but for everyone that cares for our family members when they need help.

Last year Bannister House workers helped save the historic nursing home from being closed down. Bannister House was founded in 1890 as a “Home for Aged Colored Women” in Fox Point to provide care for African-American women, many of them retired domestic servants.

Today workers are demanding a living wage and affordable benefits. The workers are unionized under SEIU 1199.