Union members rallied Thursday to protest job cuts at UC Irvine Medical Center in Orange, Calif., reports Orange County Register.
The rally marked the second organized by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, Local 3299, since October, according to the article. Last month, UCI announced the layoff of 175 employees to reduce costs.
Of those 175, 25 percent were managers, hospital spokesman John Murray said in the report. The layoffs do not include physicians or faculty. However, they do include 68 of the union's members.
The layoffs are an effort to avoid exceeding operating revenue, UCI officials have said, according to the Orange County Register. But, the publication notes, the union claims with more patients bringing more revenue, the hospital should be hiring rather then laying off.
Mr. Murray said in the report that laid-off workers can apply for open positions with preference over other candidates.
"What they call profit is an operating margin that funds academic and research missions," Mr. Murray said. "We have been seeing more patients, but seeing more patients doesn't solely dictate what our revenue is."