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Oregon Health & Science University and a union representing about 8,000 of its workers have settled on a new contract, union leaders announced Wednesday, diminishing the chance of a major labor conflict at Oregon’s flagship medical institution.
The agreement is tentative. Members of American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 328—an eclectic mix of staff whose work spans patient care, administration, and food service—must still approve the contract.
This is no sure thing in a union that has in recent months aired internal rifts. But if seen through, the provisional deal would allow OHSU to avoid a costly strike that had emerged as a real possibility. The announcement comes a month after the AFSCME 328 voted to authorize a potential work stoppage, and just this week, the union had planned “strike preparedness” sessions with members.
AFSCME 328 leaders says they have been bargaining for 11 months. According to a union blog, the latest bargaining session commenced around 9 am Tuesday. By early Wednesday, the union had sent members an update: bargaining was still ongoing, with both teams committed to “getting a tentative agreement tonight, if it is at all possible.”
The parties reached that agreement at 5:15 am Wednesday, the union bargaining team said, following a “breakthrough at the bargaining table, settling on a proposed three-year contract that “reflects the cost of living in Portland.”
OHSU did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Union leaders say the agreement includes a ratification bonus, better protection for sick health care workers and increased time off, as well as an across-the-board pay increase of around 3-4% a year over the life of the contract. The deal would also in the new year set a minimum wage of $20 per hour, increasing to $25 by 2028.
During the negotiations process, the union had justified its demands in part on the basis of MIT’s Living Wage Calculator, which found that a single adult with no children in Portland needs to earn about $27 an hour to support themselves and meet basic expenses.
“This tentative agreement is a major step toward a living wage for the workers who keep OHSU running,” Jennie Olson, a grants and contacts administrator who is the president of Local 328, said in a written statement. “Our members shouldn’t have to choose between caring for patients and affording to live in the community they serve.”
AFSCME spokesman David Kreisman tells WW the final vote on the contract is likely to take place in early January.
OHSU in recent weeks reached a contract with about 700 health care workers represented by the Oregon Nurses Association. The larger ONA nurses contract doesn’t expire until the end of 2026. OHSU also has active contracts with three other smaller AFSCME unions.
