Just two days after an email from MultiCare’s CEO announced a new affiliation with Overlake Medical Center, & further confirmed MultiCare’s aspirations to become “the Pacific Northwest’s highest value system of health”- we cannot say we are surprised to learn that the line of a “commitment to invest” stops somewhere between “a network of primary, urgent and specialty care clinics” and us- their dedicated, hard-working, & committed staff.

When we met with MultiCare to continue negotiations on May 23, management added only one percent (1%) to their previous across-the-board wage proposal, now totaling a “staggering” four percent (4%) in the first year of our Contracts. Some classifications would also receive an additional market adjustment, but management actually decreased some of them by one percent (1%) to offset their aforementioned increase. This feels less like of an investment- and more like the slap in the face.

As for healthcare, we spent time in negotiations sharing our personal stories about how MultiCare’s substandard health insurance benefits have negatively impacted us. We did so hopeful that this meant our employer were interested in working with us to begin repairing what we feel is broken- but instead, what we got back today was a proposal to establish a Benefits Committee. Advisory in it’s function, a capacity to discuss benefits, and make recommendations to the Employer- but only when both parties agree on that recommendation, of course.

As we consider a response to the proposed committee, we look to past experience with similar language we negotiated out of our contract three years ago. We did so because workers are not given much power to impact change in such a committee and our Negotiating Committee at the time felt there was little benefit in keeping the language in our contract. You can read their proposed language here >>

Together, we will need to teach MultiCare that actions speak louder than words:

Contract Action Meetings JUNE 5

9am meeting online & 12pm In-person lunch hour meeting in the Bunker Conference Room.

Informational Picket on June 12

Join co-workers Wednesday, June 12 from 4pm to 6pm at MultiCare Tacoma General Hospital (Outside on MLK) 315 M.L.K. Jr Way, Tacoma WA. RSVP and join us ▸