Board of Regents risking future of Iowa health care

As a Pediatric Clinical Pharmacist, union member, and member of the SEIU-UIHC bargaining committee, I am writing on behalf of my colleagues. The nurses, pharmacists, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, respiratory therapists, imaging specialists, social workers, and over 70 disciplines represented by the SEIU union at the University of Iowa Health Care need the help of the public: please call the Iowa Board of Regents as soon as possible at 515-281-3934 and let them know that these SEIU health care workers deserve more than they are being offered!

UIHC is the only academic medical center in Iowa and is proud to offer the highest level of care in almost every area, provides almost every subspecialty, and serves as a tertiary and quaternary referral center. UIHC workers are passionate, dedicated, and love our jobs. However, compensation for 4,200 employees, the members of SEIU, has long been so insufficient that we are currently losing quality employees at an alarming rate. Burnout and safety errors are serious concerns, recruiting is difficult, money is wasted training waves of new employees over and over, and patients ultimately suffer from the downstream effects of all of this.

Raises are determined at UIHC by the Board of Regents bargaining a contract with SEIU every other year to choose an annual raise percentage. When indicated, the institution can also give market adjustments to employees. The Board has proposed a 3% raise in 2025, which in their words is, "A little bit above the minimum." The problem is that the Board has given a "minimum" raise for years and years and market adjustments are few and far between; with two adjustments in the past 40 years. Salary raises at UIHC do not surpass inflation rates over time, meaning that UIHC employees are able to buy less with their salaries from year to year; from 2020 to 2024, purchasing power went down by 7.2%.

There is money available — the net position of UIHC at the end of fiscal year 2024 was $3.2 billion, and several projects and expansions are in the works. The Board also completely dismissed the other items in our 27-page proposal including workplace safety, parental and family leave, and much more, because they are not legally required to address them.

We need to pay our health care workers competitive salaries in order to attract highly trained employees who will stay and keep our Iowan friends and family members alive and healthy. If you could help convince the Board that 3% is not enough, we would be so very grateful!

Gabrielle Schneiderman, PharmD, BCPPS, is a UIHC Pediatric Clinical Pharmacist.