As the sun rose over San Diego Monday morning, the silhouette of picket signs could be distinguished against the backdrop of Rady Children's Hospital, where a formidable cadre of nurses, represented by United Nurses of Children's Hospital (UNOCH) Local 1699, commenced a historic two-day strike. These actions come after a tentative contract agreement, proposed during eleventh-hour negotiations the past weekend, was declined by union members, as reported by FOX 5/KUSI.
The disaccord, brewing over recent weeks, stems from the nurses' demand for wages and benefits commensurate with the high cost of living in San Diego, and according to Katie Langenstrass, executive director of United Nurses of Children's Hospital Teamsters Local 1699, the agreement failed to recognize these needs, asserting the hospital's proposal "does not adequately address the high cost of living in San Diego, the most expensive city in the country, nor does it meet the standards necessary to attract and retain the talented nurses our hospital needs", in a statement obtained by NBC San Diego. Nurses argue that without competitive pay and benefits, patient care suffers due to high turnover rates and that the recent uptick in premiums and co-payments deepens their financial strain, Alexandra Seanez, a registered nurse, relayed her tribulations revealing, "I work two jobs, personally, to make ends meet on top of my husband working," in an interview with FOX 5/KUSI.
This collective action signals a significant moment in UNOCH's over two decades of history, marking it as their initiation into strike tactics. The solidarity of the nurses is palpable, and as the union officials have stated, what has been gained is unity, even as the outcome of their negotiations remains uncertain: "While we know the past two weeks have been difficult and the future is uncertain, there is one thing we know we have already won and that’s unity. We have banded together like never before," a sentiment expressed in an email to its members Sunday night, reported by FOX 5/KUSI.
Meanwhile, Rady Children's Hospital management affirms that they stand ready to care for their pediatric patients during the strike, having contracted several hundred nurses from top children's hospitals across the nation an assurance from Dr. Patrick Frias, the hospital's president and CEO who stated, "Now our focus turns completely, as always, to the children and making sure that we’re here to care for the kids every single day," while he also mentioned that the hospital remains open to resuming talks to settle the impasse which is evident in a statement to FOX 5/KUSI. Hospital officials maintain that their proposed contracts were "fair and equitable," detailing an offer to raise the average nurse's compensation by 25% over three years. Still, nurses contend that the move does not adequately address the totality of their concerns, especially relating to benefits such as retirement and health care.
