The following is a roundup of recent events pertaining to hospital-union relationships, including strikes, pickets and new contract agreements. All events were reported within the last month, beginning with the most recent.
1. Registered nurses at two hospitals operated by Appalachian Regional Healthcare — Appalachian Regional Hospital in Hazard, Ky., and Beckley (W.Va.) Appalachian Regional Hospital — plan to strike May 1. The nurses are members of the Southern United Nurses/National Nurses United.
2. The National Labor Relations Board filed a complaint against Valley Hospital in Spokane Valley, Wash., and Deaconess Hospital in Spokane, Wash., based on a charge filed by the Service Employees International Union 1199NW.
3. More than a dozen nurses held an informational picket outside Wilkes-Barre (Pa.) General Hospital April 21 over nurse staffing levels.
4. Employees held an informational picket outside Melrose-Wakefield Hospital in Melrose, Mass., April 10 over the ongoing contract negotiation between 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East and the hospital.
5. The District of Columbia Nurses Association held an informational picket April 10 outside Howard University Hospital in Washington, D.C., after recent hospital workforce proposals included reductions.
6. Kansas City-based University of Kansas Hospital's Authority Board approved a contract proposal regarding nurse pay, despite the fact the nurses union rejected the proposal last year. KU Hospital's 1,400 nurses are represented by the KU Nurses Association, an AFL-CIO-affiliated union. The union is unable to strike due to Kansas law.
7. Some employees of Baltimore-based The Johns Hopkins Hospital went on a three-day strike April 9 after their union and the hospital failed to reach an agreement. About 2,000 Johns Hopkins' service workers are represented by labor union 1199 SEIU United Healthcare Workers East.
8. Wrapping up two years of negotiations, which at times became contentious, University of California patient care technical workers ratified a four-year contract with the system. University of California includes five hospitals, and the new contract covers workers on all campuses.
9. Unionized nurses at North Shore Medical Center in Salem, Mass., which is part of Boston-based Partners HealthCare, picketed March 27 to protest wages and working conditions. Contract negotiations between the hospital and the Massachusetts Nurses Association had broken down, which led to the picket.