Elective surgeries have been cancelled at the facilities and UCLA has hired additional replacements for the duration of the strike.
Thus far the union has refused to accept a new pension plan. The workers are also claiming patient safety as a reason as well. We all know hospitals all over are doing more with less and it seems there’s no exception here. BD
Respiratory therapists, nursing aides, surgical technicians and other patient care workers plan to stage a walkout starting Tuesday morning at five University of California medical centers.
More than 12,000 workers from the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees are expected to participate in the two-day strike over staffing, pay and pension reform, union officials said. An additional 3,400 workers from the University Professional and Technical Employees union plan a one-day sympathy strike.
UC officials are preparing for the walkout by canceling elective surgeries, chemotherapy treatments and other medical procedures. They have estimated the cost of the strike will be as much as $20 million. The strike will run from 4 a.m. Tuesday until 4 a.m. Thursday at the five centers in Sacramento (UC Davis), Los Angeles, Irvine, San Francisco and San Diego. Those participating in the strike work in the pharmacies, cancer centers, operating rooms and laboratories.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-uc-medical-strike-20130521,0,7118184.story
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