Many with Healthcare Jobs Strike in California

Over 2,000 California residents with healthcare jobs held a strike on August 28th in hopes of improving the care of their patients. The workers called upon the Daughters of Charity Health System to cease what they consider an undermining of the voice of caregivers in decisions effecting how quality care is given. They also protested several different labor practices that they considered to be unfair including the failure of hospital administration to bargain in good faith.

“Unfortunately, Daughters of Charity has ignored out call to help improve patient care for several months,” Velma Jones, a licensed Vocational Nurse at St. Francis Medical Center, said in a recent press release.

Those with healthcare jobs started the strike early on Thursday morning at 6:00 am and continued for 24 hours at five different hospital throughout the state. The facilities where they protested included St. Francis Medical center near Los Angeles, Seaton Medical center of Daly city, Seton Coastside in Moss Beach, St. Louise Regional Hospital of Gilroy and O’Connor Hospital of San Jose.

"Because of the dedication of its healthcare workers, the Daughters of Charity Health System has enjoyed years of prosperity. Hospital administrators continue to rebuff requests to discuss proposals affecting the recruitment and retention of qualified healthcare professionals, and they want to limit frontline caregivers' ability to act as an advocate for their patients," said California State Assemblyman Jim Beal Jr., who represents the state’s 24th district in regards to the strike. “I urge management to do what is best for workers and out community. It’s time to bargain in good faith.”

Over 2,400 medical employees who are represented by SEIC United Healthcare Workers-West have been in negotiations with administration since March of this year. The workers have offered several different suggestion as to increasing the standard of healthcare in the city along with creating good jobs in the area that have been proven elsewhere. Despite this, hospital big-wigs have only been willing to bargain in “bad faith”. Some believe that all of the proposals made by administrators thus far would rollback 15 years of contractual gains.

Currently over 75,00 of the state’s healthcare workers are trying to negotiate new contracts with administrators. This is believed to be one of the largest-ever coordinated bargaining efforts in the industry. UHW hopes to bring together all healthcare workers in California under on localized union. At this time UHW has over 150,000 members and is considered to be one of the fastest-growing unions in the nation.