January 15, 2025
Thom Carroll/For PhillyVoice
Resident physicians and fellows at Thomas Jefferson University Hospitals have voted to join the Committee of Interns and Residents, joining a national unionization trend among hospital house staffs.
Residents physicians and fellows at Thomas Jefferson University Hospitals have voted to unionize, following the same path of house staffs at several other Philadelphia hospitals.
The 861 workers, employed at 25 facilities in the region, are joining the Committee of Interns and Residents, which is part of the Service Employees International Union and represents 34,000 hospital staffers in the United States.
Jefferson's residents and fellows are among a wider group of Philadelphia hospital workers that have decided to unionize in pursuit of higher pay and protections against extreme hours. Following Monday's vote, CIR now represents 81% resident physicians in the Philadelphia area.
In November, medical residents at four hospitals — the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Thomas Jefferson University Hospitals, Temple University Hospital and Einstein Healthcare Network — began a unionization effort. The house staffs at Einstein, which is owned by Jefferson, and Temple each voted to unionize last week. The residents and fellows at CHOP narrowly voted against unionization.
"The resident union wave is sweeping Philadelphia, and nothing can stop us," Sarah Qadir, a psychiatry resident at Jefferson, said in a statement. "We are reclaiming control from insurance companies and corporate executives to transform our healthcare system into one that truly prioritizes patients. Together we're building a better future for doctors, nurses, and most importantly, the communities we serve."
About 1,500 Penn Medicine residents and fellows joined CIR in 2023 and secured their first collective bargaining agreement in September. The deal increased their pay by 24% to 28%, gave them eight weeks of parental leave, ensured access to personal protective equipment and provided reimbursements for Lyft and Uber rides after extended shifts.
CIR is the fastest-growing health care union in the U.S., having doubled its membership since 2019. The trend has been driven by a push for better child care policies staffing issues that have left many residents working 80-hour weeks. For decades, doctors also have shifted from working at independent practices to working for large health systems.
Residents and fellows at Christiana Care in Delaware are expected to hold a unionization vote by the end of Thursday.
