Caregivers to picket Anaheim hospital seeking better pay, safe staffing levels and functioning equipment
The picket will begin at 6 a.m. Wednesday, October 21
ANAHEIM, Calif. — More than 300 healthcare workers, including nurses, respiratory therapists and medical technicians, will picket outside AHMC Anaheim Regional Medical Center on Wednesday, October 21, as they continue fighting for a first contract that will address below-market pay, severe understaffing and failing equipment at the 228-bed facility.
“The conditions right now aren’t good for workers or patients, and we’re fighting to make things better,” said Marylou Villasenor, a surgical technologist. “We need fair pay to keep caregivers here, and we need working equipment so we can provide the best possible care for our patients.”
WHO/WHAT: An informational picket by caregivers at Anaheim Regional Medical Center, who will be chanting and carrying signs.
WHEN/WHERE: 6 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. and 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Wednesday, October 21, outside Anaheim Regional Medical Center at 1111 W. La Palma Avenue in Anaheim.
AHMC Anaheim Regional Medical Center is a for-profit hospital serving Anaheim, Buena Park, Fullerton, La Habra, and Santa Ana. Workers unionized last year with the National Union of Healthcare Workers after years without annual raises to fight for better pay and working conditions. However, hospital ownership has so far refused to meaningfully address these issues in contract negotiations that began last October.
Anaheim Regional pays starting respiratory technicians 25 percent less than UC Irvine Medical Center and starting emergency room technicians 15 percent less than UC Irvine. In contract negotiations, AHMC is insisting on paying Anaheim workers less than workers at nearby AHMC hospitals, which would force more workers to leave, exacerbating chronic staffing shortages.
Anaheim workers continue to contend with broken elevators and vermin in the hospital, and AHMC has refused to consider a union proposal that would require it to quickly address equipment issues.
In a recent union survey, 59 percent of workers responded that equipment issues are a major barrier to safe, timely care. An April 2025 inspection found that the hospital’s MRI machine had been broken for approximately three months, and that it took three days to complete an urgently ordered brain MRI.
“We want a hospital that’s safe for patients,” said Celestina Ortiz, a lead imaging scheduler. “We want the owner of our hospital to care as much about our patients as we do. And we want them to provide the staffing and resources we need to give patients the best possible care.”
For more information about AHMC Anaheim Medical Center, read this fact sheet.
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The National Union of Healthcare Workers is a worker-led movement representing 19,000 healthcare workers, including nearly 1,000 AHMC employees at hospitals in Anaheim, Whittier and Daly City.
