Planned Parenthood Calls Workers’ Cost of Living Demands ‘Selfish’

Respect the Mission, Respect the Workers: 1199SEIU members, some seen here picketing outside Planned Parenthood in Downtown Brooklyn this week, have been working without a contract all summer long. Photos/Joe Maniscalco

Thanks for reading! If you value this reporting and would like to help keep Work-Bites on the job AND GROWING, please consider becoming a “Work-Bites Builder” today for just $3.00 per month. Work-Bites is a completely independent 501c3 nonprofit news organization dedicated to our readers — and we need your support! Invite friends, family, and co-workers to subscribe to the Work-Bites Wake Up Call!!

By Joe Maniscalco

Unionized workers hit the streets outside Planned Parenthood locations in Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, and Long Island on Tuesday in search of a living wage their employers are calling “selfish.”

The boss’ characterization drew a big laugh from Planned Parenthood midwife Lily Dalke when Work-Bites visited the picket line on Court Street in Downtown Brooklyn Aug. 11.

“We work 10-hour days. On average I see 30 people in a day. I work my ass off,” Dalke said. “Sometimes, we stay late, sometimes we skip our lunches. All we want is a fare cost of living increase.”

Over 160 Planned Parenthood employees unionized with 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East have been working without a contract since June.

The two sides are in negotiations now, but the union says Planned Parenthood is attempting to claw back all the gains 1199ers have made since organizing in 2019, as well as pushing more regressive demands including wage caps for PCA’s [Patient Care Assistants].

Planned Parenthood employees and their families gather outside the organization’s Downtown Brooklyn offices at 44 Court Street.

Other members of the 1199SEIU bargaining unit include nurse practitioners, physician assistants, registered nurses, sonographers, and administrative staffers.

“It’s a little frustrating,” a stenographer who has worked for Planned Parenthood for the past three years, told Work-Bites on Tuesday. “We have a passion to work with Planned Parenthood—but we have our rights as well. Our workers make Planned Parenthood [possible].”

She requested anonymity due to potential doxing fears from anti-abortion activists and dismissed the idea that unionized workers like her are being “selfish” with their contract demands.

“That’s crazy,” she said. “I think we’re being fair in what we’re asking for.”

On average, PCA’s at Planned Parenthood of Greater New York facilities earn about $25 an hour. That equates to $52,000 annually. According to the MIT Living Wage Calculator, however, a single person living in New York City needs to earn over $74,000 to get by comfortably.

Be Fair to Those Who Care: Planned Parenthood staffers in search of an equitable contract say they believe in the work, but can’t make a living on current wages.

"Planned Parenthood of Greater New York is actively negotiating with 1199SEIU to reach a contract deal that is fair, equitable, and enables PPGNY’s mission to provide the highest quality care and services to our patients and communities,” the organization told Work-Bites in an email. “We know that we can best carry out our mission when we develop, invest in, and fairly compensate our staff, and when equity is at the heart of every decision we make. We are committed to working through our differences at the bargaining table and we are confident that we will come to a reasonable compromise.”

Dalke said that every member of her household pitches in just to make their family life work.

“All we want is a fare cost of living increase,” she added. “We believe in the [Planned Parenthood] mission. I think we do an amazing job talking care of patients. But in order to show up we’ve gotta be compensated fairly.”

Planned Parenthood’s wide array of sexual and reproductive health services includes cancer screenings, HIV testing and counseling, menopause hormone therapy, gender affirming care, and more.