Over 800 UB resident physicians intend to strike in September
BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Over 800 resident physicians affiliated with the University at Buffalo have authorized a strike in September, the Union of American Physicians & Dentists said Tuesday.
The residents, 830 in total, intend to strike for two days on Sept. 3 and 4. The union claims that the residents are the lowest paid in New York State, are the only ones without retirement benefits and the only ones without a training stipend in the region.
The union accuses UB of “bargaining in bad faith,” “discriminating against/bullying residents for their union participation” and “unilaterally degrading healthcare benefits of residents and fellows during the bargaining process.”
“We will not be bullied anymore. We are taking a stand for ourselves and for our patients,” said Dr. Armin Tadayyon, a fourth-year anesthesiology resident and member of the union’s bargaining team, in a release.
UB residents and fellows elected to unionize in May 2023 and have been at the bargaining table since, with 93% of resident physicians voting in favor of the strike.
“We have dedicated our lives to healing people, yet UB refuses to provide us with the salary or benefits to afford medical care from the very hospitals in which we work,” said Dr. Joanne Adams, a pediatrician in her first year of residency, in a release. “This is extremely dangerous, especially for the Buffalo community.”
“The Jacobs School continues to support and advocate for salary increases for medical residents and improvements to their educational and working conditions,” UB said in a statement to WIVB News 4. “Although neither UB nor the Jacobs School are the legal entity responsible for negotiations with the medical residents, we remain hopeful that progress will be made in the negotiations and a strike will be avoided.”
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Aidan Joly joined the News 4 staff in 2022. He is a graduate of Canisius College. You can see more of his work here.
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