Providence Oregon nurses ratify second deal offer, ending 46-day strike
The largest healthcare strike in Oregon's history has come to a close after 46 days on the picket line and a rebuffed deal.
The demonstration involved nearly 5,000 nurses working at Providence hospitals represented by the Oregon Nurses Association, and was initially joined by other clinical workers including doctors. Though some of those bargaining units reached deals earlier in the strike (see those updates below), the bulk of the participants belonging to eight bargaining units across eight Providence hospitals were still holding out.
Of note, those nurses rejected a tentative deal brought to a vote earlier this month that did not include retroactive pay updates or realignment of the bargaining units' contract expiration dates, which proved to be sticking points with union membership.
The deal "overwhelmingly" ratified by members during a weekend vote and announced Monday evening brings retroactive pay for 75% of all hours worked in 2024 by those whose contracts expired before December, with nurses at two hospitals also seeing a $2,500 bonus, according to the union's announcement. Also, 10 of the 12 bargaining units now have expiration or wage reopener dates within three months of each other.
Other bullet points from the contracts highlighted by the union include wage increases from 20% to 42% over the life of the contract, integration of patient acuity into staffing plans and a guaranteed hour of wages for each missed meal or break.
The nurses are slated to return to their posts for the Wednesday night shift.
"These contracts represent a major victory for frontline caregivers, but more importantly it's a victory for Providence patients and the communities we serve," Virginia Smith, a registered nurse working at Providence Willamette Falls and leader of the ONA bargaining unit for that hospital. "As RNs, we believe that these contracts will lead to greater recruitment and retention of frontline nurses as wages become more aligned with other health systems, and we have staffing language that will allow us to spend more time with the patients that need the most care."
In a Friday release announcing the tentative deals, Providence Oregon Chief Executive Jennifer Burrows said the system and the workers "look forward to continuing to provide excellent and compassionate care for our patients in these communities we serve."
Feb. 10
Nurses at eight hospitals reject tentative deal; St. Vincent hospitalists approve
The Oregon Nurses Association (ONA) announced over the weekend that a tentative deal with Providence was "overwhelmingly" and "resoundingly" shot down by nurses across eight hospitals, extending the month-long, 5,000-nurse strike.
Across seven of the eight bargaining units, the union reported Friday 92% turnout for a ratification vote with 83% no votes. The vote for those at the final hospital, Providence Medford Medical Center, was delayed a day due to inclement weather, but on Saturday joined in rejecting the offer.
ONA said that its bargaining teams brought the terms of what Providence claimed was its best possible offer to their members for a vote in a show of good faith and "to demonstrate their commitment to transparency."
Though that deal included "across-the-board increases" in wages and automatic penalty payments when nurses are forced to miss a break or lunch, the union's prior public messaging of the deal had highlighted missed goals such as full retroactive pay and unified contract expirations.
"The rejection of Providence's contract offer reflects the unified stance of Oregon's frontline nurses, who remain committed to securing contracts that prioritize safe patient care, fair compensation, and a sustainable work environment," the union said in a statement. "ONA has called on Providence to return to the bargaining table immediately to deliver a fair contract that addresses these systemic issues."
The weekend did show some progress for the health system, as more than 70 hospitalists working at St. Vincent Medical Center voted "unanimously" in favor of their first-ever contract.
Nurses and other providers at Providence Women's Clinic had already agreed to negotiated terms.
Providence reaches tentative agreements with striking providers
Feb. 5
Providence is nearing the end of the tunnel amid a nearly month-long strike of almost 5,000 nurses and other providers at its Oregon hospitals.
On Tuesday night the parties announced tentative agreements with striking nurses at all eight affected hospitals, who will remain on strike until the deal is officially ratified in a vote opening Thursday morning and running through Saturday.
The news comes after a deal from earlier in the week affecting nurses and physicians at Providence Women's Clinic was ratified, with those workers scheduled to return to their jobs Thursday.
Negotiations are still ongoing between the large nonprofit system and hospitalists working at its Providence St. Vincent Medical Center until Wednesday night, when another tentative deal was announced.
The developments land after almost a month of demonstrations and seven days of "intensive" in-person mediation that was requested by Oregon Governor Tina Kotek. The strike was the largest among healthcare workers in Oregon history, according to the Oregon Nurses Association (ONA).
Per the union, terms of Tuesday's tentative deal for nurses includes "across-the-board increases" in wages and automatic penalty payments when nurses are forced to miss a break or lunch, among other gains. On the other hand, the union said it was unable to secure changes to the expiration dates of the workers' contracts and could not secure full retroactive pay, though a portion of retro pay will be distributed as a bonus based on hours worked since contract expiration.
"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," the system said in a statement of Tuesday's tentative deal.
Providence reaches tentative agreement with Women's Clinic providers; broader Oregon strike continues
Feb. 3
Though the broader strike continues, Providence has reached a tentative agreement with two of the 11 bargaining units participating in Oregon's largest healthcare strike.
The terms—which come a few days after a request from Governor Tina Kotek brought representatives from both sides back to in-person mediation—affect registered nurses and other providers at the system's Providence Women's Clinic. A ramification vote on the tentative agreement opened Monday and will close Tuesday evening.
According to the Oregon Nurses Association, the terms' "major wins" include a new wage scale "resulting in 4% to 20% pay increases for most RNs, plus across-the-board raises in the second year." Registered nurses will also see extra pay for certain shifts and work and more that double the current funding level for professional development. Advanced practice providers also secured wage increases between 7.5% to 15% and other protections.
"This agreement at Providence Women's Clinic proves that solutions are within reach when Providence negotiates in good faith and prioritizes investment in their most valuable asset; their caregivers," Charlie Saltalamacchia said in a release from the union. "The same commitment to fair bargaining must be extended to all remaining negotiations so that every caregiver can return to work with dignity and respect."
The release noted that the Providence Women's Clinic workers are "eager to return to their patients and resume the vital work of caring for their community, they remain steadfast in their solidarity with their colleagues."
Nearly 5,000 Providence nurses, doctors launch Oregon's largest healthcare strike
Jan. 13
Almost 5,000 Oregon healthcare workers are striking against nonprofit health system Providence after more than a year of failed contract negotiations.
The open-ended demonstration began Friday and spans eight hospitals and six clinics. It is the largest healthcare strike in the state’s history, according to the Oregon Nurses Association, which represents the workers.
Though largely comprised of nurses, the walk-off includes physician associates and doctors—the latter of which is a first for Oregon, per the union.
“Providence has rejected our common-sense proposals to improve patient care and safety by not committing to safe staffing and other critical patient safety issues in our contracts,” the Oregon Nurses Association wrote in a notice on its website. “When healthcare workers are asked to do more with less, patient lives are at stake. Providence has pushed nurses, doctors and other healthcare professionals to work under unsafe staffing conditions.”
Providence urged the workers against striking in recent weeks, writing in online updates that the strike would create “significant risk” for those receiving care in the state. The health system said it arranged for 2,000 temporary replacement nurses to fill in the gaps but noted Friday that “this time it’s even more complex, because the strike is larger and there is no replacement workforce for physicians.”
The system said the union’s leaders rejected an offer that would have included a 20% raise over three years for acute care registered nurses, up to $5,000 in ratification bonuses for acute care registered nurses whose contracts and increases for physicians that could exceed $20,000 to $30,000 for those working full-time. Providence also stressed that its “typical nurse working full time makes $125,000 per year,” and that “many full-time represented physicians … already earn more than $300,000 per year.”
In Providence’s most recent update, published Sunday, the system said “healthcare operations are going well” across the eight affected hospitals. It will be exchanging future proposals through federal mediators but said that the union’s insistence on holding negotiations across all tables “is regrettable, especially for physician tables.”
Providence had announced Saturday that it was moving forward with mediated negotiations at two hospitals, Providence Medford and Providence Newberg. This came as a surprise to the union, which said it first learned of Providence’s plans through the press and criticized the “inconsistent, disingenuous and contradictory” reasoning for Providence’s refusal to bargain with certain bargaining units.
“If Providence finally agrees to come back to the bargaining table with all of our members, they need to take bargaining seriously and make proposals that do not look like their proposals from before the strike,” the union said Saturday. “True bargaining means an intentional effort to reach a fair contract that addresses core issues of chronic understaffing, patient safety and competitive wages and benefits including stopping cuts to employee healthcare.”
Prominent lawmakers in Oregon have put pressure on Providence to bargain with the union, including Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden. Gov. Tina Kotek, in a Friday statement, said the health system “wasted 10 days when they could have been at the table making progress towards a comprehensive resolution of their labor dispute. We must take care of the people who take care of Oregonians—all hospital staff deserve a fair contract.”
In a responding statement, Providence said it “needed all 10 days to prepare our hospitals to care for the community from the moment our nurses walk out,” but that it “heard from the governor and share[s] her sense of urgency to get back to the table.”
Renton, Washington-based Providence reported a $155 million operating loss (-0.7% operating margin) for the nine months ended Sept. 30, the most recent financial results it had made available. Though a dip from its strong first half, the operating performance is still a marked improvement over the $857 million loss (-4% operating margin) during the same period in 2023. The system attributed some of the difficulties to higher labor costs stemming from patient volume increases but also noted an overall increase in labor productivity amid staffing initiatives.
Speaking Monday morning at the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference in San Francisco, Providence Chief Financial Officer Greg Hoffman acknowledged the ongoing strike and pointed investors to a Saturday press release highlighting over 600 union-represented nurses who chose to work.
“A lot of our caregivers are crossing the lines for that strike,” he said at the conference. “We continue to want to pay fair market wages as well, but we also take a stand when we need to.”
The Oregon Nurses Association, in its own Saturday statement responding to Providence’s claim, said that “no one can independently confirm” the system’s numbers and that nearly 90% of its members are on the picket lines.
“We’re also hearing from some members who initially crossed the line and are now reaching out to join the strike,” the union wrote in that statement. “If the strike lines get even bigger, does this mean Providence will not be able to bargain again?”