Registered Nurse members of SEIU Local 121RN picketed in front of Garfield Medical Center on Cinco de Mayo (May 5) as part of their fight for a fair contract. The registered nurses at Garfield Medical Center and Greater El Monte Community Hospital are currently in contract negotiations with hospital management. Management has so far completely rejected our Union’s modest contract proposals.
Garfield and El Monte management has proposed to reduce the percentage increase between anniversary wage increases from 5 percent to 3 percent, effectively decimating the wage scale these dedicated RNs fought for and rightly deserve. Management also recently unilaterally reduced employee’s health insurance coverages. This has resulted in much higher costs to the RNs and coverage for some specialty medications, such as chemotherapy, are not covered at all and the employee must pay 100 percent of the cost out of their own pocket.
Garfield Medical Center and the parent company, AHMC, make a good profit and should share that profit with the employees who help them earn it. AHMC earned $89,222,758 in 2013, with Garfield Medical Center earning $29,373,500 of that. El Monte suffered a loss in 2013 of $487,260, but this is a vast improvement from previous years when El Monte lost $4.8 million in 2012, $3.4 million in 2011, and $6.8 million in 2010.
Click here to view photos of the picket.
Click here to view a short video of the picket.
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The Chinese-language newspaper, World Journal, also covered our informational picket in front of Garfield Medical Center.[/caption]