About 1,100 SEIU Healthcare 1199NW-represented workers have ended their weeklong strike at Richland, Wash.-based Kadlec Regional Medical Center and its Kennewick ER, as contract negotiations continue.
Here are seven things to know about the strike and negotiations:
1. The strike began Aug. 20 and ended as planned at 6 a.m. Aug. 27.
2. "We have welcomed back our caregivers who participated in the strike, and together, our team continues to provide the safe, compassionate, high-quality care our community depends on us for," the hospital said in a statement shared with Becker's.
3. The union also acknowledged the end of the strike on its Facebook page, writing, "The past week has been filled with many emotions — we never want to strike and leave our patients, but Providence left us no choice."
4. SEIU Healthcare 1199NW and Kadlec, which is part of the Providence system based in Renton, Wash., began negotiating a new labor contract in January.
5. During negotiations, the hospital bargaining team has "passed multiple strong proposals to the union that would provide immediate and significant wage increases averaging 15.98% for our caregivers, with additional increases over the next three years," the hospital said in a statement shared with Becker's on Aug. 12.
6. Meanwhile, the union seeks a contract with wages that are more aligned with those at Swedish Health Services in Seattle and investments that recruit and retain front-line workers.
7. The next negotiating sessions are tentatively scheduled for Sept. 16-18, and Sept. 24-26.