As many of you know, the medical techs at St. Charles Medical Center in Bend, Oregon, are on strike! These OFNHP members have been fighting for a fair contract for over a year, and despite saving lives during COVID the hospital has refused to bargain fairly, agree to common sense wage and union proposals, and are stalling. Enough is enough, and so this past Monday the workers gave a 10-day notice of strike.
On Thursday, March 4th, those workers will walked off the job. 94% of the unit voted to strike, the largest margin that many of us have ever seen. If you are interested in coming down to the strike line we encourage your participation, we are entering the second day of the strike and management shows no indication of a willingness to bargain (contact ItsMyUnion@gmail.com if you intend on coming), but there is also a community petition that we are using to support them.
The support has been overwhelming. Senator Jeff Merkley issued a public statement of support, as did Representative Jason Kropf. We have open support from the Bend Education Association, SEIU Locals 49 and 503, Oregon AFL-CIO, the Teamsters (who are respecting the picket line), Portland IWW, Jobs With Justice, and many others. In Bend, our supporters blanketed the town with flyers, city councilors voiced their support, and the other workers at St. Charles have shown unilateral support. The nurses at St. Charles from our friends at the Oregon Nurses Association have been some of our biggest champions, speaking up about how the hospital's use of replacement workers negatively affects patient care. Despite all this the hospital's management continues to refuse to negotiate and is willing to put the entire community at risk to save a few dollars.
It is important to send the message that the rest of the community is behind these workers, especially since management will try to pit the patients against the healthcare professionals. We know that when the hospital care for its employees, it cares for its patients too, so we are sticking with the St. Charles techs on this fight.
Click Here to Fill Out This Petition
It is also important that we support the St. Charles techs' strike fund, which they are using to help these workers survive their time away from work. The strike will go on as long as necessary, so they will need our support to care for their families.