Healthcare Workers Demand Justice as Wage-Fixing Lawsuit Sheds Light on Systemic Exploitation

For decades, America’s healthcare workers—nurses, doctors, pharmacists, and others on the frontlines—have been celebrated as heroes. Yet behind the scenes, many of these same professionals are contending with stagnant wages, long hours, and eroding benefits. While hospital executives boast record profits and massive expansion projects, the workers keeping patients alive are often struggling to stay afloat themselves.

Now, a new class-action lawsuit has brought long-simmering frustrations to the surface. Filed by pharmacy residents against some of the most prestigious hospitals in the United States, the suit alleges that these institutions colluded to suppress wages, effectively fixing salaries for pharmacy residents across the country. The accusations center around the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP), which plaintiffs claim facilitated coordination between hospitals to keep resident pay artificially low.

“For far too long, medical employees have been handed the short end of the stick when it comes to fair compensation and benefits, despite being the backbone of the healthcare system. While hospitals and healthcare corporations rake in billions, the very workers keeping patients alive are forced to accept stagnant wages, grueling hours, and minimal support,” says Sarah M. Worthy, CEO of DoorSpace, a company advocating for improved working conditions in healthcare.

The legal action alleges that major healthcare systems used their influence to maintain below-market salaries for pharmacy residents who often work 60 to 80 hours per week. Many of these residents also carry substantial student loan debt, leaving them in financially precarious positions even as they take on essential clinical responsibilities.

“This recent lawsuit… is a stark example of how this neglect isn’t just an oversight—it’s the result of a profit-driven system that prioritizes executives and shareholders over frontline workers,” Worthy continues. “This legal action underscores the pressing need to reevaluate and reform residency programs, ensuring that aspiring pharmacists receive fair compensation and opportunities without being subjected to exploitative practices.”

The suit comes amid growing scrutiny of how hospitals treat their medical trainees. While the public often assumes that residency is a rite of passage in medicine—complete with long hours and modest pay—many critics argue the current system is both unsustainable and unfair. Pharmacy residents, like their physician counterparts, are typically locked into single-year contracts with little negotiating power. And in many cases, their residency is a requirement for licensure and employment in specialized fields.

Meanwhile, the institutions employing these residents continue to post strong financial performance. A 2023 report by the Lown Institute found that nonprofit hospitals in the U.S. collectively generated billions in profits, with CEO salaries rising sharply in recent years. In contrast, compensation for many healthcare workers, including nurses and support staff, has failed to keep pace with inflation.

Advocates say the wage-fixing lawsuit is just one symptom of a much deeper problem: an American healthcare system driven more by shareholder value than patient care or worker wellbeing.

“As long as the system rewards financial performance over ethical treatment of staff, we will continue to see burnout, turnover, and declining care quality,” says Worthy. “Until the healthcare industry values people over profit, we will continue to see declining patient care as the norm rather than the exception.”

The lawsuit could have far-reaching implications, not only for pharmacy residents but for how residency programs and training hospitals operate across all disciplines. If successful, it may pave the way for additional lawsuits or legislative reforms aimed at improving transparency and fairness in healthcare employment.

At the heart of the issue is a simple question: If healthcare workers are truly heroes, why are they being treated like expendable labor? The answer, many advocates say, lies in a system where profit margins matter more than people—and that’s a diagnosis in urgent need of treatment.