PAGE 2 | March 19, 2021 | NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS
NORTHWEST
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...After nine day strike, St. Charles commits to bargain
From Page 1
34 to join OFNHP on Sept. 5,
2019. Faced with intransigence
and disrespect, 145 workers
voted to authorize the strike—
94% of the bargaining unit. The
workers are specialists in 22 sep-
arate fields, including anesthesia,
surgery, nuclear medicine, en-
doscopy, pharmacy, and diagnos-
tic technologies like ultrasound,
X-ray, and CAT scan. That
means they’re not easy to re-
place.
In bargaining, St. Charles
played a combination of hard-
ball and hard-to-get. OFNHP
spokesperson Shane Burley said
hospital negotiators refused to
agree to the kind of standard
union step pay schedule in
which workers at the same ex-
perience and skill level are paid
the same for the same work. De-
spite Bend’s high cost of living,
Burley said the St. Charles techs
are very underpaid compared to
their counterparts in Portland.
St. Charles also balked at the
standard “union security” clause
(a requirement that all repre-
sented workers share the union
representation costs). Instead,
the hospital adopted the stance
of anti-union “right-to-work”
states, which insist that union
dues be voluntary, in order to
bleed unions of resources.
Federal law requires union
employers to meet and bargain
in good faith, but after meeting
28 times, St. Charles manage-
ment walked out after a Dec. 3
negotiating session and declined
to schedule further meetings.
Months passed. OFNHP said re-
peatedly it was ready and avail-
able to meet any time, even
nights, weekends, and holidays.
On Jan. 31 and Feb. 1, OFNHP
members held informational
pickets to demand that St.
Charles Medical Center return
to the table. St. Charles agreed,
but wouldn’t consider any dates
before March 10.
So OFNHP held the strike
vote, and on Feb. 22, gave a
legally required 10-day strike
notice. Normally when that hap-
pens, employers scramble to
make a deal to avoid the disrup-
tion. Not St. Charles, which was
content to stick with a scheduled
March 10 session with a media-
tor, six days into the strike.
St. Charles even asked a fed-
eral court to prevent the strike,
but its plea was rejected by the
judge.
Workers walked off the job to
cheers and elbow bumps from
doctors and nurses at the hospi-
tal. And on their picket line,
strikers experienced firsthand
the support of the community.
Deschutes County District At-
torney John Hummel and State
Rep. Jason Kropf (D-Bend)
walked the picket line with
them. So did members of other
local unions. The Teamsters
union sanctioned the strike so
represented truck drivers could
refuse to cross the picket lines
for deliveries. At least 270 sup-
porters contributed a total of
$36,000 to the union strike fund.
U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.)
tweeted support for their cause.
Meanwhile, inside, the strike
was having an impact.
St. Charles brought in some
temporary replacements, but it’s
not clear how effective they
were. The hospital diverted pa-
tients and cancelled procedures.
In the end, the two sides were
able to agree to get back to the
table. OFNHP called an end to
the strike, and workers returned
to the hospital March 15.
Hours: Mon-Sat 12-6 pm Closed Sunday
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