Nurses plan one-day strike as union, hospital management remain at odds

Nurses at the AHMC Seton Medical Center in Daly City intend to hold a one-day strike starting Wednesday morning, according to the California Nurses Association.

The nurses are striking for what they describe as hospital management’s disregard of California’s safe-staffing law, according to their union. But hospital management say the strike is about wage increase demands.

According to state law, the California Department of Public Health establishes how many patients a nurse can safely care for, depending on the type of care being provided.

The California Nurses Association/National Nurses United is a union that represents 300 nurses at the Daly City medical center.

Nurses say that in the last two years, more than 65 nurses have left the hospital due to poor working conditions. The union also alleges that the hospital is not providing enough resources to support them, citing a lack of nursing assistants, clerks and secretaries, which causes nurses to have to pick up non-medical work on top of their nursing duties.

One registered nurse, Michelle Kubota, said that they have had to fight management for safe staffing during the pandemic.

Kubota said in a statement:

“Because we have no ancillary staff, when I am caring for COVID patients I not only have to address their medical needs, but I also need to empty the garbage, clean up the rooms, deliver the food, assist my patients to the restroom, and answer calls from their family and friends.” 

Kubota said that patients deserve better and called on the AHMC Seton Medical Center to “prioritize safe patient care over profits.”

However, Tina Ahn, a spokesperson for AHMC Seton Medical Center, said via email that the strike is about nurses demanding increased wages.

Ahn said:

“We always strive to be in compliance with required staffing ratios. … What CNA (California Nurses Association) leaders are prioritizing with this strike, however, are demands for a more than 12-percent average wage increase for registered nurses.”

Ahn said that they have hired a “significant number” of full-time registered nurses in the last year.

Ahn said:

“Union leaders know full well the wage demands they are making will slow the hospital’s return to solid fiscal footing and will slow all the community’s efforts to restore this vital healthcare facility.” 

In a follow-up interview, California Nurses Association spokesperson Julie Tran said that their demand is about making sure there is safe staffing standards at facilities. Tran added that it’s also to ensure there is recruitment and retention.

Tran said:

“We know we can’t run a hospital without nurses. And we’re trying to make sure that as patients are coming in, there are safety standards that are set, and that’s not being met at this moment.” 

Tran said the union has had ongoing conversations with AHMC Seton Medical Center since last December.

AHMC Seton said that union leadership rejected a “fair offer that was similar to what other unions have agreed to” and they plan to “continue bargaining to reach a fair agreement for our nurses while staying fiscally responsible and ensuring the hospital remains operational for years to come.”

The strike is scheduled to begin at 7:30 a.m. Wednesday at the hospital at 1900 Sullivan Ave. in Daly City. Nurses plan to picket from 7:30-10:30 a.m., then 2-5 p.m. and plan to rally from 3-3:30 p.m.