PORTLAND, Ore. — On Tuesday morning, more than 3,000 nurses across six different Providence Health facilities started a three-day strike in what is the largest nurses strike in Oregon history.
Nurses claim they are overworked, understaffed, underpaid and need better health care benefits. The strike is a push for better conditions after the pandemic strained so many health workers.
What hospitals are impacted?
The strike will impact six Providence hospitals across Oregon: St. Vincent in Portland, Willamette Falls in Oregon City, Newberg, Hood River, Milwaukie and Medford.
When is the strike?
The nurses strike started at 6 a.m. on Tuesday, June 18, and will last three days. The strike is schedule to end on Thursday, June 20.
Why are nurses striking?
Nurses have said their main sticking points are wages, health care benefits and staffing levels. Several of them have also accused Providence of attempting to subvert Oregon's recently enacted minimum staffing level law for hospital nurses.
The strike comes after more than six months of contract bargaining between Providence and the nurses unions at each facility, including federal mediation in an effort to avoid a strike.
Providence said they've been at the bargaining table the entire time and have offered an 18% increase in wages over three years.
Will services be disrupted?
Providence said replacement workers will be in place to help keep all of their sites open and serving patients during the strike. On Sunday, both the Oregon Nurses Association, the union representing nurses, and Providence told KGW that they are encouraging people to come in and seek care despite the strike.
What's next?
Providence said it plans to continue negotiations with the union after the strike.
"We'll be working hard when the strike is over to come back to the table and get to a fair contract with our nurses as quickly as we can," said Jennifer Gentry, Providence Central Division Chief Nursing Officer.
The Oregon Nurses Association said they've been trying to hold talks even after issuing the strike notice, but haven't been able to come to an agreement with Providence.
How this strike plays out is yet to be determined, but perhaps some precedent can be gleaned from a similar strike almost a year ago. Roughly 1,800 nurses at three other Providence Oregon facilities participated in a five-day strike in June 2023. Pay and staffing levels were also central issues in the contract dispute that sparked that strike. The nurses eventually reached a deal with Providence in August 2023.