Nurses in red shirts and lab workers in white coats broadened the spectrum of the three-day protest at University of California hospitals Tuesday, joining service workers in green on picket lines from San Francisco to San Diego. At UC San Diego Medical Center in Hillcrest, about 500 employees were estimated to have participated in the labor dispute, with another 800 up the coast in front of Jacobs Medical Center in La Jolla. The numbers were significantly more robust than they were Monday, when only service workers walked out, and the infusion of more sign-wielding university employees seemed to energize not just those who marched, but also passing drivers who slowed their cars and trucks, honking their horns in support. As university security, San Diego police officers and even a few law enforcement from the California Highway Patrol watched, protesters circled outside the Hillcrest hospital, shouting slogans through bull horns and banging drums. Angie Mendoza, an environmental services worker with the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), said having nurses, pharmacists, rehabilitation specialists and case managers join the protest brought new energy. “It’s beautiful to have all of them support us” Mendoza said. “They’re supporting us today, and we would do the same for them.” “We’re trying to keep it peaceful. If it gets out of hand, then it gets ugly, and we don’t want that at all,” added coworker and fellow AFSCME worker Blanca Gallegos. As of mid-afternoon, the university reported no safety issues due to either of the protests at its medical centers though it was not clear whether campus dining halls closed Monday due to food service workers not showing up for their shifts continued Tuesday. The university did not provide a number of temporary workers it had to bring in Tuesday but did say through a spokeswoman that the strike did not cause administrators to move any patients to other hospitals. AFSCME is protesting what it says is the forced imposition of a 2 percent raise for service workers after the union failed to approve a proffered 3 percent-per-year bump offered by university negotiators. The union has said it’s asking for wage increases closer to 6 percent and for better commitments on equal hiring and outsourcing of jobs to private for-profit companies that generally pay significantly slimmer benefits. Just like service workers, members of the California Nurses Association and University Professional and Technical Employees Union (UPTE) who joined picket lines Tuesday are working without a contract, but they’ve been less open about exactly what they’ve been asking for in negotiations. Michael Jackson, a registered nurse in the emergency department at UC San Diego Medical Center, would not say much more than that he and his fellow nurses were walking to support service workers. “We’re out here today and tomorrow to supporting our brothers and sisters in the AFSCME in solidarity,” Jackson said. But it’s clear that these walkouts are not just in solidarity for California workers. Many are aware of Janus versus AFSCME Council 31, a federal lawsuit now before the U.S. Supreme Court that attempts to undo requirements in 21 states that require all public employees in unionized professions to pay union dues even if they’re not part of the bargaining unit. Margaret Sheridan, a clinical social worker and UPTE member at Jacobs, said she believes that it’s the Supreme Court case that has truly stalled talks. “They’re waiting us out to see what happens with the Janus decision, and we’re out here trying to hold the line,” Sheridan said. University hospitals across the state have done what they can to reduce the number of patients in beds during the strike, rescheduling hundreds of elective procedures. But it’s not possible to keep everyone out of the hospital, even if you postpone their procedures. Take Robyn Scott, for example. She came to Jacobs Medical Center’s Sulpizio Cardiovascular Center from the big island of Hawaii for a special surgery to remove several dangerous clots from the blood vessels in her lungs. Early Tuesday afternoon, she sat outside the heart hospital in a wheelchair, a medical oxygen tube in her nose and an intravenous medication bag hanging to her right as she watched and listened to protesters screaming slogans on the other side of the medical complex’s main circular drive. She said her surgery was scheduled to occur early this week but had been postponed by the strike. That delay came, she said, on top of two weeks spent in Hawaii hospitals before it was decided her best bet was to come to UCSD where surgeons are known as the best in the nation for the specific procedure she needs. Though she’s stuck waiting, she said she’s not resentful and has not noticed a decline in the quality of care since the strike started. “I don’t really know the nitty gritty details of what they’re protesting about. I do know it’s about wage disputes and pensions. I understand. It’s unfortunate that I have to be here at the same time, but I do understand,” she said.
As protests outside University of California hospitals moved into its second day, service workers in green on picket lines were joined by a range of nurses and lab workers. The protests have been born out of stagnating contract negotiations between health care, research, service and technical staff and the University of California that have taken place over the last year. The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) protesting what it says is the forced imposition of a 2 percent raise for service workers after the union failed to accept a 3 percent pay rise offered by university negotiators. Instead the AFSCME is pushing for a wage increase closer to 6 percent, with improved commitments on hiring and outsourcing of jobs private for-profit companies. The move by nurses and lab workers to join the protesters comes amid Janus versus AFSCME Council 31, a federal lawsuit now before the U.S. Supreme Court that attempts to undo requirements in 21 states requiring all public employees in unionized professions to pay union dues. University hospitals across the state have attempted to reduce the number of patients in hospital beds and rescheduling hundreds of elective procedures but its has not been entirely successful.