Providence - Moving Towards an Info Picket!

On March 16 we met with Providence Centralia Hospital (PCH) and on March 19 we met with Providence St. Peter’s Hospital (PSPH) to continue bargaining for a first contract. Throughout the bargaining process, both bargaining committees have been making proposals that are very similar to one another. Both PCH and PSPH are facing the same workplace issues and are dealing with the same kind of pushback at the bargaining table. This is the reason why PSPH and PCH workers must stand UNITED! 

At the PCH table, we were able to obtain one tentative agreement on the “Labor Management Committee” article. The labor-management committee provides a space for workers and management to come together and try to solve workplace issues like job assignments and staffing. We also made our economic proposal, which included competitive wage increases, premium pay, a retirement plan, and health insurance coverage. We expect the Hospital will respond in the same manner as they did with PSPH Techs. They offered the PSPH Techs no guaranteed wage increases (only merit increases) and no longevity steps. In all our union contracts with Providence, we have annual wage increases plus longevity step increases which are dependent on your years of service. We believe that if Providence responds this way, we should take their proposal to a vote just like PSPH! This will show Providence that we stand UNITED against their lackluster economic proposal. 

At the PSPH table, we spent most of the time on two articles: leaves of absence and seniority. We have moved away from some of our previous positions to show Providence we are prioritizing other articles like compensation and PTO/EIB. We also presented our financial transparency petition at the table and Providence was outraged by our show of solidarity! The point of our petition is to demand transparency on how they spend their money to better understand the resources they are devoting to us and how much more they can spend on wages! Providence may say that they provided “extra shift bonuses” to us, but this was only available to respiratory therapists (RTs). Also, they provided “pandemic pay,” but this pay has been inaccessible for most workers and it was only offered for a short period of time. 

We need to take public action to bring light to Providence’s treatment of frontline workers and move Providence at the bargaining table! Our next step is to have an informational picket at Providence St. Peter’s, Centralia, and Everett. We will be holding this informational picket on May 5. We will be holding picket training meetings on April 7 and 28. Please attend one of these meetings to learn your rights! If you have any questions, please contact your Union Representative Erin McCoy (206) 436-6598.

Picket Training  

Wednesday, April 7 @ 6:30 PM
Wednesday, April 28 @ 6:30 PM

Contact your Bargaining Team or Union Rep for call-in details. Details will be also emailed out.