Nursing Walkout on Tap for Thursday; UC Seeks Injunction Against Strike
Negotiations to stave off historic nursing strikes in California and Minnesota dissolved last week, increasing the likelihood that more than 24,000 nurses will strike on June 10, the San Francisco Chronicle reports (Colliver, San Francisco Chronicle, 6/7).
Nearly 13,000 California nurses at eight hospitals plan to strike on Thursday (Tayefe Mohajer, AP/San Jose Mercury News, 6/4). The strike in Minnesota is expected to involve about 12,000 nurses.
Background on Strike
The California nurses said the planned strike stems from concerns that hospitals do not assign sufficient staff to treat patients on nights, weekends and during breaks.
Although state hospitals must maintain specific nurse-to-patient ratios in different departments, strike organizers say these ratios are not strongly enforced, which threatens patient safety (California Healthline, 6/1).
The strike is expected to involve nurses at:
- Citrus Valley Medical Center in Covina;
- Marina del Rey Medical Center;
- San Pedro Hospital;
- UC-San Francisco Medical Center;
- UC-Davis Medical Center in Sacramento;
- UCLA medical centers;
- UC-Irvine Medical Center; and
- UC-San Diego Medical Center.
Strike notices have been canceled at:
- Brotman Medical Center in Los Angeles;
- Dameron Hospital in Stockton; and
- Olympia Medical Center in Los Angeles.
UC Seeks Injunction
Last week, UC announced plans to seek a temporary restraining order to prevent the walkout.
The California Public Employment Relations Board, which administers collective bargaining agreements for public employees, will seek the injunction Tuesday in San Francisco Superior Court, UC officials said. They added that PERB has agreed with UC's contention that the strike would:
- Violate nurses' "no strike" provision;
- Display "bad-faith bargaining"; and
- Endanger patients.