Providence St. Joseph Medical Center, Caregivers Reach Agreement on a Unio...( Contract grants 1500 Caregivers memb...),Health

Contract grants 1500 Caregivers, members of SEIU UHW-West and 121RN, their first ever wage scales based on seniority and classification at hospital

BURBANK, Calif., Aug. 30 /PRNewswire/ -- Caregivers at Providence St. Joseph Medical Center, who are members of SEIU United Healthcare Workers - West (UHW) and SEIU 121RN, reached a tentative agreement for a contract with Providence St. Joseph Medical Center. The contract, which expires Sept. 30, 2011, grants workers their first ever wage scale system. The contract is set to be ratified by a vote of union members at the hospital Wednesday Sept. 5.

The agreement, which comes after a planned strike was narrowly averted on June 13, provides for a ban on subcontracting at the hospital; wage increases to help recruit and retain qualified caregivers; and the employer-funded education and training program to provide training opportunities for union members at the hospital, and other non-economic improvements. All of these are the basis of providing the best possible care for patients.

"I feel good about the settlement. It was a beautiful ending for a process that involved a lot of hard work from a lot of dedicated people," says Randy Arruda, a surgical equipment technician at the hospital. "Getting the administration to renounce their right to subcontract work currently done by employees is satisfying. We believe we saved a lot of jobs for people who may have eventually found themselves out of work."

"This settlement opens the door to a more productive working relationship between Providence St. Joseph Medical Center management and its most valuable asset, the workers who care for patients," says John Borsos, chief negotiator and Vice President of UHW.

"I believe that now, thanks to the improved wages and the education and training opportunities we've agreed upon, we have a chance of retaining all the quality employees we have at Providence," says Cindy Triola, a registered nurse at the hosp
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