December 25, 2010: With support from California Assemblyman Bob Blumenfield and California State Senator Fran Pavley, along with an enthusiastic nod from Governor-elect Jerry Brown and sanctioning from LA Federation of Labor, Central Labor Council of San Bernardino and Riverside Counties, registered nurses from Riverside Community Hospital (Riverside) and West Hills Hospital (San Fernando Valley) took to the streets at 5:30AM on December 23rd to begin a five day permitted strike against the world's largest for profit hospital chain and billion dollar felon, Hospital Corporation of America (HCA).
At issue are HCA's abandonment of negotiations with nurses' Union SEIU 121RN and HCA's failure to respond to the matters (listed below) that the Union contends are critical to the needs of nurses and patients:
Staffing by Acuity: Our Union is proposing language that addresses issues with the system that reviews a patient's acuity. The sicker our patients, the fewer we should have under one RN's care. This is needed to protect our patients, allow them to heal, get well and go home to their families.
Rest and Meals: We want to ensure that rest and meal breaks are guaranteed and enforceable by our contract. RNs work very long hours; if a nurse cannot rest and recharge, patients are at risk.
Clinical Ladder: Our Clinical Ladder proposal would encourage RNs to attain additional education and training and receive small, usually temporary pay increases for doing so. Our Clinical Ladder proposal is achievable and is a win for the hospital, patients and RNs.
Call-Off: Nurses in some areas of the hospital are reporting significant loss of pay because of call-offs. Our Union is proposing that the hospitals establish a bank of time to compensate nurses for involuntary call-off. RNs need a stable pay check just like everyone else. (Call-off refers to times nurses are sent home from their jobs when patient loads are low).
The strike is scheduled to go from December 23rd through December 27th (no strike on Christmas), beginning each day at 5:30AM at both hospital locations. By sanctioning this strike, LA Federation of Labor and Central Labor Council of San Bernardino and Riverside Counties authorize their affiliate members (delivery drivers, electricians, etc.) not to cross the nurses' picket lines to do hospital business.
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