Providence reaches tentative agreement with Oregon nurses on strike
Providence operates eight hospitals in Oregon, including Providence St. Vincent Medical Center in Southwest Portland. (Photo courtesy of Providence Health & Services)
Providence Health & Systems nurses and other health care professionals at eight Oregon hospitals have reached tentative agreements with the company that could end the strike that started Jan. 10.
The Oregon Nurses Association, which represents nearly 5,000 striking workers, and Providence officials announced late Tuesday that both sides have reached a tentative agreement. The strike will end only after members vote — and pass — the contracts, the Oregon Nurses Association said.
The vote is scheduled for Thursday and Friday in most hospitals, except for the Medford hospital, where nurses will also have Saturday to vote on it because of weather conditions. The strike, the largest involving health care workers in Oregon's history, stretched across the state, including Portland's St. Vincent, Providence Portland Medical Center and hospitals in Hood River, Medford, Milwaukie, Newberg, Seaside and Oregon City. Hospitalist physicians at St. Vincent Medical Center remain on strike and in negotiations, officials said.
'Providence is grateful for the tireless work done by everyone involved in this process, as well as those who have been working in our hospitals caring for our communities during the ONA strike,' Providence said in a release.
Each hospital has a separate contract.
In a release, the union said key provisions include wage increases, both now and in the future, an hour of penalty pay for nurses when they miss a break or lunch and contract language recognizes Oregon's new nurses staffing law, which requires hospitals to meet minimum thresholds for patient safety.
The two sides reached the tentative agreement after a week of 'intensive mediation,' the union said. Gov. Tina Kotek requested that step so they could bridge the impasse.
Nurses and physicians at Providence women's clinic, which has six Portland-area sites, also reached an agreement, which members approved this week.
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