It was the kind of meeting that is taking place in restaurant kitchens, small offices, retail storerooms, and large auditoriums all over this city, all over this state, all over this country.
Paul Levy, the guy who runs Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, was standing in Sherman Auditorium the other day, before some of the very people to whom he might soon be sending pink slips.
He looked out into a sea of people and recognized faces: technicians, secretaries, administrators, therapists, nurses, the people who are the heart and soul of any hospital. People who knew that Beth Israel had hired about a quarter of its 8,000 staff over the last six years and that the chances that they could all keep their jobs and benefits in an economy in freefall ranged between slim and none."I want to run an idea by you that I think is important, and I'd like to get your reaction to it," Levy began. "I'd like to do what we can to protect the lower-wage earners - the transporters, the housekeepers, the food service people. A lot of these people work really hard, and I don't want to put an additional burden on them.
"Now, if we protect these workers, it means the rest of us will have to make a bigger sacrifice," he continued. "It means that others will have to give up more of their salary or benefits."
He had barely gotten the words out of his mouth when Sherman Auditorium erupted in applause. Thunderous, heartfelt, sustained applause.
Paul Levy stood there and felt the sheer power of it all rush over him, like a wave. His eyes welled and his throat tightened so much that he didn't think he could go on.
I'd like to keep an eye on this and see how it pans out. I often think about Mr. Ether's last employer. When he saw what was coming down the economic pike, why did it not occur to him to do something like this?
3 comments:
That would make more sense instead of firing all these people. Ask them to take less in wages instead of shutting down a place or laying people off.. You just never know what people will do esp when you need the money.
Wow. That made me cry. I guess the thing I need to remember when I'm ready to give up on people is that they really are mostly decent to each other. We just hear about the ones who aren't more often.
Thank you for the reminder of good.
Because some people aren't decent. That's why.
But I still want to believe that there are more that are decent, as opposed to the other. So I think, as things continue to sink, that you'll see more people who get it.
I HAVE to believe that...
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