Oregon State Hospital (OSH) is a high stress environment that thrives on consistency. Management is pushing for a mandatory schedule change that would impact every member of SEIU working at the hospital. In a setting that thrives on consistency, a drastic shift in scheduling could potentially reduce staff to patient ratios in some of the hospital’s most acute units, causing the kind of instability that poses health and safety risks for both patients and our members. Additionally, significantly altering those schedules will have a direct impact on the home and family life of all those working at hospital.

The members at OSH made a demand to bargain months ago, after management tried to implement the schedule change with just five days notice. They have been in negotiations over scheduling ever since.

On August 30, SEIU 503 members and allies in Salem rallied and marched during a break in bargaining at the Oregon State Hospital. “We’re here today to unite and show management that we deserve dignity and respect in the workplace,” said OSH union leaders in a collective statement. “We are people, too. Our lives exist outside of work as much as they do inside.”