Union for UC patient care technical workers authorizes strike

By Kathy Robertson
Senior Staff Writer- Sacramento Business Journal

Members of a union that represents 13,000 patient care technical workers at the University of California — including about 2,900 at University of California Davis — have voted to authorize a strike.

Votes were cast over a three-day period last week at UC’s five medical centers and student health centers across all 10 UC campuses.

Workers authorized the strike with more than 97 percent support, according to officials at the Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 3299.

The dates and duration of the strike have yet to be finalized. The union says it is committed to patient protection and will provide a 10-day notice before the strike.

“We work with patients every day and want them to be safe,” union spokesman Todd Stenhouse said.

The strike vote comes after 11 months at the bargaining table. The last contract expired in September. Contract talks hit impasse four months ago and mediation proceedings have failed to produce agreement on major issues.

Technical workers represented by the union include respiratory therapists, nursing aides, licensed vocational nurses, security guards, hospitality workers, hospital assistants and MRI, surgical and pharmacy techs.

The union points to cost cutting and understaffing while management salaries climb — and has called for a cap on pension benefits for senior managers and executives, alleging annual payouts as high as $300,000.

University officials in Oakland counter the union has refused to agree to UC’s pension reform, started in 2010 to address underfunding of the plan. Fourteen other bargaining units have agreed to the changes, along with nonunion staff.

“The way to resolve differences about pension benefits is through collaborative discussions at the bargaining table — not by threatening strikes that endanger patient care,” said Ann Madden Rice, CEO of the UC Davis Medical Center.

“A strike could significantly curtail our normal operations, affecting public safety in the entire Sacramento region. We hope that AFSCME will work with the University of California to reach a fair and financially sustainable contract,” Rice added. “Meanwhile, we must prepare for a strike with patient safety and quality as our highest priority.”

[Source]: Sacramento Business Journal