SEIU-UHW Trumpets Pay Raises for Members, Despite Bad Economy

Hospital workers in Daughters of Charity system facilities in both Northern California— O'Connor Hospital in San Jose, Saint Louise Regional Hospital in Gilroy, Seton Medical Center in Daly City, and Seton Coastside in Moss Beach— and Southern California—St. Francis Medical Center in Lynwood—received at least a 3% increase, as well as 18 months of back pay.

Other California contracts settled by SEIU-UHW members in 2009 include: Alameda Hospital, Chinese Hospital in San Francisco, Hazel Hawkins Memorial Hospital in Hollister, Moreno Valley Community Hospital, Sutter Amador Medical Center in Jackson, Sutter Delta Medical Center in Antioch, Sutter Solano Medical Center in Vallejo, and Washington Hospital in Fremont.

SEIU United Healthcare Workers-West is the largest hospital and healthcare union in the western United States with more than 150,000 members, and is part of the 2.1 million-member SEIU.

(Update: Dec. 29. Robert Dicks, senior manager of media relations at Lucile Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford, says the SEIU-UHW has exaggerated the pay increases in the contract reached with his hospital. "A new, two-year SEIU-UHW contract was ratified in a vote on Aug. 27, 2009, for both Stanford Hospital & Clinics and Lucile Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford. That new contract provided the following: 2% across-the-board wage increases each year; An additional 2% annual step increase for those eligible.")