Proposed deal includes retroactive pay for nurses whose contract expired last year or earlier; nurses to vote this weekend
By Lynne Terry, Oregon Capital Chronicle
Nurses would be paid more and receive compensation for missing breaks under a tentative agreement reached by Providence Health & Services and the Oregon Nurses Association that could end a six-week-long strike.
Providence and the union announced the new agreement, which comes after union members rejected another deal earlier this month, in separate news releases Friday. Providence said it reached the deal after three days of intensive bargaining.
“Providence is hopeful that ONA-represented nurses will ratify the tentative agreements that pave a solid path forward for us all,” said Jennifer Burrows, chief executive of Providence Oregon.
The union hailed the agreement as a milestone, saying it represents “a significant achievement for ONA nurses, marking a powerful step forward in their ongoing commitment to fair wages, safe staffing, and high-quality patient care.”
The strike, which started Jan. 10, is the longest in Oregon’s health care history. Nearly 5,000 nurses walked off the job at Providence’s eight hospitals in Oregon in Hood River, Medford, Milwaukie, Newberg, Seaside and Oregon City and two in Portland. The strike also included nurses, physicians and other staff at Providence’s six women’s clinics in the Portland area and hospital physicians at Providence St. Vincent Medical Center in southwest Portland.
The physicians and clinic union members approved their deals but the nurses rejected the early agreement by more than 80%.
The Oregon Nurses Association said the bargaining units for seven of the hospitals recommend that union members back the agreements, while the team at Providence Medford was neutral.
The deal includes wage increases for nurses from 20% to 42%, with an immediate 16% to 22% raise upon ratification, the union said. It also includes step increases starting next year along with guaranteed pay for missed breaks or meal breaks.
It also includes retroactive pay for nurses whose contract expired last year or earlier. The contracts for each hospital expired on different dates — for example, the Providence St. Vincent contract expired Dec. 31, 2023.
Under the deal, nurses would receive the new rates for 75% of all hours worked without a contract in 2024, including for vacation days and paid time off, the union said. Obtaining retroactive pay has been a major sticking point.
The contracts for nurses at Seaside and Portland expired this past Dec. 31, so they would not be eligible for retroactive pay, but would receive a $1,750 bonus spread over two pay periods after ratification, plus another $750 within six months.
Nurses will vote on the agreement this weekend. If it’s ratified, nurses would return to work next Wednesday.
If adopted, the contracts would have a range of expiration dates, from Dec. 31, 2026 for St. Vincent, Newberg, Oregon City and Milwaukie and March 31, 2027 for Medford and Hood River. The contract for Providence Portland and Seaside nurses would expire Dec. 31, 2027.
Lynne Terry has more than 30 years of journalism experience, including a recent stint as editor of The Lund Report, a highly regarded health news site. She reported on health and food safety in her 18 years at The Oregonian, was a senior producer at Oregon Public Broadcasting and Paris correspondent for National Public Radio for nine years.
