A union representing UCLA Health and David Geffen School of Medicine employees is asking members to strike across the University of California system for 24 hours starting at midnight on Wednesday, November 13.
“Detailed plans have been developed to maintain access to our hospitals and clinics, continue to serve our patients, students, trainees and community and minimize disruptions,” said Johnese Spisso, president of UCLA Health and CEO of the UCLA Hospital System, and Kelsey Martin, MD, PhD, dean of the medical school. “We are committed to our shared mission of providing leading-edge patient care, research and medical training, and we value the contributions of all employees and respect their rights.”
UCLA Health is evaluating resources and strategically deploying staff and managers to ensure the highest priority – providing safe, high-quality care. Prior to the strike, UCLA Health retained temporary contract staff with extensive qualifications and experience. A limited number of outpatient and elective procedures – such as diagnostic imaging – were re-scheduled for times either before or after the strike.
The striking union is the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), which represents patient care technical and service employees. Among the patient care technical employees are medical assistants, perfusionists, phlebotomists, and emergency trauma and radiology technicians. AFSCME service employees include custodians, security guards and food service workers.
The University of California (UC) Office of the President negotiates contracts with labor unions on behalf of UCLA and other UC campuses.
Information about the collective-bargaining process is available on this UC website and from the UC media office. Contact: 510-987-9200, [email protected].
