AMA joins the labor movement

By Phil Benjamin

One way of looking at the American Medical Association's decision to establish a division to start their new role as a labor union is: "So what else is new?" After all, over 50,000 physicians already belong to the two major unions in this field, the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and the American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME).

Another 12,000 or so Podiatrists [foot doctors] belong to the Office Professional Employees International Union (OPEIU). And, of course, to add fuel to the cynical fires, some anti-union writers are predicting a fight over jurisdiction between the AMA and these unions. But, if you allow yourself to think that narrowly, you're missing the whole point.

The AMA is a long standing anti-union, mostly very conservatively acting medical organization that rarely sides with patients and workers. They often fronted for corporate interests against workers and their unions. But, even they had to respond to a recent survey among salaried doctors that 88 percent favored belonging to a labor union to defend themselves against corporate health industries. The American Nurses Association also recently voted to unionize.

The left and progressive movements have long sought to organize physicians into labor unions.

In the post World War II period, many medical students, interns and residents fought to protect themselves against working well over 150 hours per week for no pay.

The hospitals saw them as students and the labor laws agreed. After years of struggle the Committee of Interns and Residents was organized and, through force of struggle, won collective bargaining rights in major cities throughout the country. The house staff of hospitals in NYC won bargaining rights, the National Doctors Alliance, and recently affiliated with SEIU. Hours have been radically reduced, and salaries for interns and residents are certainly adequate. All of these efforts were either scorned or opposed by the AMA. That has now changed. Motivation is always a good thing to determine.

You can then judge the overall actions by these motivations. With physicians there is no difference. They make no bones about the reason for these actions. The corporate takeover of medical care has left doctors out in the cold.

Insurance carriers, their Health Maintenance Organizations, and other corporate players in the field have long used the docs as pawns in the game and the doctors have agreed to that arrangement. A well paid pawn will do most anything to keep the money and power flowing. But, in the last few years all that has changed. Insurance carrier HMOs and other similar organizations are too busy seeking high profit margins to worry about the feelings of doctors. And, the truth of the matter is they don't think they need the doctors political strength anymore. This could be a major strategic error and will benefit the people's movement and spell disasters for the corporate profiteers. What is to be done with these new worker/doctors? Simple.

The AFL-CIO needs to keep its promise of fostering unity among similarly employed workers (professionals) so that they can maximize their strength. SEIU, AFSCME, OPEIU and now the AMA/Labor Union Division needs to be brought together and forge a program of action against the Medical Industrial Complex - most immediately the insurance carrier HMOs. The program needs to address the "bread and butter" of these worker needs: hours of work; job security; freedom of medical decision making to take care of patients; and appropriate salaries.

But the program cannot stop there. Induction into the trade union movement means understanding their responsibilities in general field of "social solidarity." Doctors have to join the movement. They will find out that salaried physicians can gain immeasurable power, job security and decent salaries by supporting labor's general goal for a comprehensive national health program that covers everyone, regardless of their place of employment and/or job status.

The AMA will have to swallow hard on a National Health Program that mirrors the needs of their physician union members, but swallow they will. This is great news for the people's health movement. We will keep track of these events, but readers are encouraged to write to us about local organizing efforts by all physicians to establish and join a union.