More than 2,000 NUHW members at five Northern California Providence hospitals joined forces on a coordinated contract campaign that succeeded in winning contracts with major wage increases and reductions in healthcare costs.
The agreements came after three days of continuous bargaining and under threat of a five-day strike across five Providence hospitals: Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital, Queen of the Valley Medical Center, St. Joseph Hospital Eureka, Redwood Memorial Hospital, and Petaluma Valley Hospital.
The contracts also represent the first collective bargaining agreements for 56 professional workers in Eureka and about 100 others at Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital, who joined NUHW last year.
In addition to making Providence pay salaries that are in line with regional competitors like Sutter Health, the contracts also make it harder for Providence to close local services. The company would be required to provide three months advance notice before service reductions, which would give workers time to mobilize community members to organize to preserve the services.
Providence has given little advance notice in recent years as it has closed birthing centers, outpatient labs, urgent care centers, and the only acute rehabilitation center in Humboldt County.
“We won a lot more than what Providence ever intended to give us, and it’s because we remained united, and we were ready to strike across Northern California,” said Kellie Shaner, a monitor tech at St. Joseph Hospital Eureka. “This contract will make it harder for Providence to take more services out of our county, and it will help ensure that our hospitals are well-staffed with experienced workers who are dedicated to serving patients in our communities.”
Workers at Providence hospitals had been bargaining together for more than a year to improve their leverage and demonstrate their shared determination in improving conditions for patients and themselves. Several workers at hospitals in the North Bay traveled up to Humboldt, and vice versa, during the early sessions, infuriating management representatives who wanted to keep the workers isolated.
Initially, management offered raises of just 1.75 percent for all workers, but after many months of negotiations — and following a region-wide picket — the company began significantly increasing its proposals.
The final agreement guarantees wage increases at the hospitals ranging from 11 to 14.75 percent over three years with about half the workers receiving significantly higher raises to get their salaries in line with what Providence’s leading competitors pay. On average, workers at Queen of the Valley Medical Center will see a 12 percent raise in the first year of the contract, with other hospitals seeing similar average increases.
Among job classifications that received larger raises:
- Certified Nursing Assistants at Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital will see an immediate 18 percent raise.
- Radiology Techs at Petaluma Valley Hospital will receive an immediate 13.4 percent to 17 percent raise.
- Housekeepers at Queen of the Valley in Napa will receive an immediate 22.5 percent raise.
In addition to the wage gains, workers also secured:
- A reduction in healthcare premium costs.
- Lowered caps on healthcare cost increases.
- Stronger language when it comes to successorship and subcontracting.
- Stand-by/on-call pay at the healthcare minimum wage.
- Increased protections from call-offs/daily cancellations.
- Ratification bonuses.
“These contracts are game-changers and a testament to our willingness to fight together across the region,” said Psyche Clark, an obstetrics technician at Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital. “We forced Providence to finally pay salaries that are in line with competitors like Sutter. That is going to improve care in the North Bay because we will be able to retain the experienced workers that we’ve been losing over the years because Providence wasn’t interested in being competitive.”
Bargaining with Providence in Northern California is far from over. Hospice workers in Sonoma County seeking their first contracts are still in negotiations with the company as are registered nurses at Petaluma Valley Hospital.
With Providence moving to offload its hospices to a private equity-backed company, hospice workers are preparing to strike on July 2 and 3 to further their demands for a contract that will provide fair salaries and lock in current caseload caps to ensure that Sonoma County residents can still get quality, caring end-of-life care.
