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Galesburg Terrace Employees Picket, Still Waiting for Unionization
Employees of a Galesburg Nursing Home say they're tired of waiting for their boss to let them do something they've been waiting a year to do: unionize.

Employees of Galesburg Terrace spent part of their Saturday holding an informational picket; they approved representation by the Service Employees International Union over a year ago, in part, so they could get better pay and benefits.

SEIU spokesman Paul Waterhouse tells WGIL part of the problem is that Galesburg Terrace owner Michael Lerner has a history of not being union-friendly. "He's a very difficult man to deal with," Waterhouse said. "We're having similar problems with him in Sterling, Illinois, at Camelot Terrace. The licensed practical nurses in Regal Rehab, which is right outside Chicago, petitioned to be brought into the union contact, and he fired three or four of them on the spot."


Waterhouse says Galesburg Terrace employees are paid anywhere between a dollar and a half per hour, and two and a half dollars per hour less than their Chicago-area counterparts. He says that's not doing any favors in hiring good employees, or keeping them around.

We attempted to contact Michael Lerner, a Chicagoan, for this story, and we were unsuccessful.
06 08 08 by Newsroom
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