UPTE’s public claims mislead, are unjust
By Daily Bruin Staff
Oct. 17, 2001 9:00 p.m.
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The University Professional and Technical Employees union owes
us all an apology.
To advance its own agenda, the union, which has been bargaining
with University of California administrators over wages and
opportunities for years, is making public claims that UC Medical
Centers are ill-prepared for a bioterrorist attack on America due
to understaffing. UPTE plans on sending UC President Richard
Atkinson a letter saying “the University of California
Medical Centers are one act of bioterrorism away from a public
health emergency of which we may not be able to cope.”
These claims are misleading, especially when it comes to
UCLA.
The UCLA Medical Center is better staffed than the average
hospital in California. Whereas other hospitals collectively
average a staff vacancy rate of 9.1 percent, UCLA’s vacancy
rate is only 5.9 percent.
The Medical Center also has experience dealing with dangerous
biological agents that can be weaponized. A year and a half ago, it
was well prepared to handle an anthrax scare though it turned out
to be false.
Even California Nurses Association union labor representative
Kristin Eldridge said the Medical Center “is ready if
something happens,” and that nurses will “be on top of
things.”
It is unreasonable to expect the Medical Center, or any
hospital, to be staffed for an attack they cannot predict.
Biological weapons come in all forms ““ a hospital prepared
for an anthrax attack is not necessarily prepared for a smallpox
attack. Dedicating staff and funds to addressing a problem we
can’t yet define is inefficient.
Currently, the nation can treat up to two million anthrax
victims for 60 days ““ this is an acceptable and rational
level of preparation.
Instead of giving in to the “what-ifs” and panic, we
should be reasonably prepared for a large-scale biohazard attack
and be fully prepared for the more likely smaller scale
attacks.
Fiscally and emotionally, we cannot afford to start building up
huge, expensive networks that help us sleep better at night, but
leave cancer, AIDS and other patients out to dry.
Though the union has legitimate claims regarding staffing and
wages that the university should listen to, its tactics are poorly
thought out.
The union’s opportunistic strategy is an insult to the
6,000 people who lost their lives on Sept. 11 and only contributes
to the mass hysteria this nation is dealing with as a result of
terrorism.
UPTE should not send the letter to Atkinson. Instead, they
should apologize to the community and retract their statement.
Union membership should likewise hold their leadership
accountable for their irresponsible behavior which could leave them
empty handed at the bargaining table.
