Healthcare workers at Fountain Valley (Calif.) Regional Hospital and Medical Center picketed Tuesday, calling for a fair contract and improved working conditions, reports OC Weekly.
The workers are represented by the National Union of Healthcare Workers. NUHW claims the hospital's owner, Dallas-based Tenet Healthcare, does not offer comparable pay and relies too heavily on part-time and on-call employees, according to the report.
"One of the problems that we're facing is that they're hiring part-time employees, working them full-time, but only giving them part-time benefits," Joshua Jesus, a radiology department worker at Fountain Valley Regional, said in the report. "We're here for patient care. We want a full-time staff that's here all the time to care for our patients."
In an emailed statement to Becker's Hospital Review, the hospital said it is in first contract negotiations with the union, which represents service and maintenance, skilled maintenance and technical employees. The hospital said negotiations have been ongoing for approximately eight months and, while the two sides have resolved multiple issues, a full agreement has not yet been reached.
"While we recognize the union's right to picket, we are disappointed that NUHW is taking this approach before the remaining issues have been fully exhausted through the bargaining process. We will continue to negotiate in good faith in hopes of soon reaching successful resolution," Fountain Valley Regional added.