UPDATED: Lawrence & Memorial strike update

LATE NEWS: negotiations re-start Friday night
Great turn-out, lots of solidarity support on a beautiful day

Text and photos by Will Collette

UPDATE: Lawrence & Memorial management agreed to start re-start bargaining negotiations with the union TONIGHT, instead of waiting until next Tuesday, as management had originally planned. This will be with the federal negotiator helping to keep the talks on track. At this afternoon's rally, Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) called for the talks to being again, and so they are. 

Several hundred striking nurses and technicians at Lawrence & Memorial Hospital rallied outside the hospital at noon today, supported by a broad range of supporters from other unions and community organizations, families, friends, neighbors and former patients.

I was glad to see so many Building Trades workers out there (and glad I wore my Building Trades hat).

The two AFT-Connecticut unions that represent more than 800 L&M workers plan to wrap up the four-day strike over hospital management's unfair labor practices tomorrow night at 11 PM. The buzz in the audience is that management is asking the strikebreakers (a.k.a. scabs) if they want to stay on beyond Saturday in case management decides to carry out its threatened lock out of its workers.

But the atmosphere at today's rally was positive, even holiday-like, almost like a labor version of the Macy's Day Parade with a 16-foot tall inflatable rate, plus a huge inflatable pig and a 10-foot tall Fat Cat balloon. The nurses expressed regret that, for the first time in L&M's 101-year history, they had to strike. But then again, L&M has never had a CEO like $700K+ Bruce Cummings.

If Cummings ordered a lock out to commence tomorrow night, that's on him, too.

The parties are scheduled to go back to the bargaining table on Tuesday, assisted by a federal mediator.