On April 10th, the nurses who work at Providence Hood River Memorial Hospital met with their employer for their eighth bargaining session since negotiations began on Dec 18th, 2023. The result was the same consistent foot dragging from management as the previous 7 sessions. Providence has taken a very hard line by refusing to meaningful engage around the nurse’s top priorities: Safe Staffing language, affordable health insurance, market-based wages and differentials, and modest increases to the current sub-standard annual accruals.
After the full day bargaining session, a group of about 50 nurses and community members held a rally out front of Providence’s Hood River Hospital to let the community know that the nurses were going to keep standing together for safe staffing to protect patient care standards, and to hold the line for market-based wages and benefits. State Representative Travis Nelson, also a nurse, joined the rally along with Tammie Cline, ONA’s Statewide Presence. The rally was also attended by Teamster’s local 670 and Teamsters Local 223. Additional bargaining sessions are scheduled for April 29th, followed by two mediated sessions on May 6th and May 13th.
The Nurses are one of six bargaining units that are currently in negotiations with Providence. A total of over 3000 nurses at 6 different Hospitals are currently working to reach tentative agreements for new CBAs across the state.
In solidarity,
Timothy Welp (he, him)
Oregon Nurses Association Labor Representative
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