June 18, 2024
Providence is prepared for nursing strikes in six Oregon hospitals starting Tuesday, June 18 at 6 a.m. Oregon Nurses Association (ONA) is the union representing striking nurses.
Affected hospitals are:
- Providence St. Vincent Medical Center
- Providence Hood River Memorial Hospital
- Providence Medford Medical Center
- Providence Milwaukie Hospital
- Providence Newberg Hospital
- Providence Willamette Falls Medical Center
All affected Providence hospitals are well-prepared and will maintain patient care.
- We have fully prepared for the strike to ensure that it does not impede the care we provide our patients.
- We are working with a nationally recognized agency with a demonstrated track record to hire credentialed and experienced replacement nurses to work during the strike. This includes RNs in specialty care areas across our ministry.
- Incoming replacement workers are fully vetted, and 97% have at least seven years of experience. They also meet all regulatory and credentialing requirements for their roles. Many have worked in a variety of acute care settings in hospitals across the U.S.
- ONA-represented caregivers have the right to cross the picket line, if they choose, to care for our patients and community.
The union made the choice to strike, despite market-competitive offers at each bargaining table.
- Providence negotiates each hospital contract separately – but across the six ministries before strike had market-competitive offers of approximately 10% increases in the first year of the contracts.
- A typical Providence nurse working a full-time schedule in our Oregon hospitals makes more than $100,000 per year.
- ONA has been promoting a statewide strike since before contracts at each Providence hospital expired.
The contractual replacement period ends Sunday, June 23.
- Despite union claims, Providence hospitals are not locking out striking nurses. When the union made the decision to hold strikes, its negotiators were well aware that the contractual replacement period is five days, which was the length of their three Providence Oregon strikes last year.
- It’s also clear that the union chose to call a shorter strike than last year to fabricate a basis to try to “shame” Providence over the length of the contractual replacement period.
- A text from ONA to its members in Providence hospitals reads “Our RN bargaining team declared a 3 day strike starting 6/18 @ 6 am with the goal of creating the most cost for Providence – we know that scab contracts last 5 days. RNs will return to work 6/21 at 6 am, if Prov chooses to lock us out for 2 days in order to save money, we will shame them in the press.”
- In addition, in the leadup to the strikes, the union has attempted to disrupt health care access and medical supply deliveries at Providence hospitals in Oregon.
We are looking forward to the end of the strike so we can return our focus to the bargaining process and work with the union to reach common ground on a new contract for our nurses.
More information
- Read more about staffing and other facts about the upcoming strike at: Get the facts, not the myths
- Find updated information about the strikes at: blog.providence.org/oregon-strike-info
