Renton, Wash.-based Providence is preparing for thousands of workers to begin striking Jan. 10 at its facilities in Oregon.
Seven things to know:
1. On Dec. 30, Providence received strike notices from the Oregon Nurses Association detailing plans to hold open-ended strikes beginning Jan. 10 at hospitals and clinics across Oregon.
2. Nearly 5,000 workers are slated to go on strike, according to the union. Striking workers include nurses, nurse practitioners and other healthcare staff. They also include hospitalists, obstetric hospitalists and palliative-care physicians at Providence St. Vincent Medical Center in Portland, and represented caregivers at Providence Women's Clinic.
3. Providence St. Vincent will have the largest number of workers participating in the strike, according to an ONA news release. Strikers at Providence St. Vincent include 1,875 nurses who have been working without a contract since Dec. 31, 2023, and 70 physicians and nurse practitioners who have been bargaining since January 2024.
4. The union contends workers are striking because Providence has rejected its "common-sense proposals to improve patient care and safety by not committing to safe staffing and other critical patient safety issues in our contracts."
5. In a Jan. 2 statement shared with Becker's, Providence Oregon said union leaders "chose to call a walkout rather than accept 20% raises for nurses, on average, over three years and up to $5,000 ratification bonuses."
6. Following the 10-day strike notices, the ONA filed an unfair labor practice complaint with the National Labor Relations Board for what it says is Providence's refusal to bargain. The filing comes after Ms. Burrows said Providence has "been transparent with union leaders that in the event of a work stoppage, bargaining stops to support our priority of ensuring we continue to provide excellent patient care."
7. Providence has hired replacement workers and identified other strategies to continue to provide care during the strike.