Nurses at Rady Children’s Hospital continue strike

SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) — Nurses at Rady Children’s Hospital are continuing their two-day strike later this month after negotiations over their latest labor contract reached an impasse.

The nurses’ union, United Nurses of Children’s Hospital (UNOCH) Local 1699, announced the strike on Thursday, less than a day after the hospital’s last collective bargaining agreement was overwhelmingly rejected over issues with proposed wages and benefits.

When about 1,600 unionized nurses walk out of work starting July 22, it will be the first time the UNOCH Local 1699 union has staged picket lines in response to collective bargaining negotiations.

“Today we officially announced our intention to strike and called on our dedicated nurses at Rady
“The Children’s Hospital will be conducting an unfair labor strike,” said Katie Langenstrass, executive director of UNOCH Local 1699, in a statement. “We did not make this decision lightly, but the hospital’s adamant refusal to value our important work has forced us to do so.”

According to the union, nursing staff are demanding fair wages and better benefits, such as health insurance and retirement provisions, in the ongoing collective bargaining negotiations.

In a statement, Langenstrass said member nurses currently receive wages that are “well below market value” and that some of them have to pay up to $1,000 a month in premiums for additional services such as health insurance.

“The hospital’s unwillingness to offer fair wages and benefits drives away experienced nurses and makes it difficult to recruit new talent. This constant turnover jeopardizes the quality of patient care,” Langenstrass said. “The administration at Rady Children’s Hospital has left us no choice but to take this stance.”

A spokesperson for Rady Children’s Hospital said the previously discussed pay raise was not insignificant, but it was unclear how it compared to what nurses were demanding.

“That’s a 22% increase over three years. That’s really a big increase. The average nurse makes $70 an hour. That’s a lot of money when you look at the average salary in San Diego County,” Chris Abe, vice president of operations at Rady Children’s Hospital, told FOX 5/KUSI on Wednesday.

Abe added that the hospital management would continue to negotiate, with the next meeting scheduled for Monday. Although a 10-day strike notice has been given, if the two parties come to an agreement, the strike could be called off.

If the strike continues as planned, representatives of UNOCH Local 1699 said they would “work closely with the hospital” to ensure that patients could continue to receive care.