Providence St. Peter nurses could vote this month on a possible strike

After overwhelmingly rejecting a contract proposal over the summer, nurses at Providence St. Peter Hospital in Olympia could vote later this month on a possible strike.

The strike authorization vote is scheduled for Oct. 30. Unions representing staff at Providence hospitals across the state have scheduled similar votes for the last two weeks in October.

In August, Providence St. Peter nurses voted 544 to 1 to reject the contract proposal, following the recommendation from their union. Sticking points included paid time off and wage increases.

Since then, negotiators “haven’t had much progress to speak of,” said union spokesman Tom Geiger with UFCW 21, which represents about 1,200 nurses at the Olympia hospital. Geiger said authorizing a strike would send a message to hospital management ahead of future negotiations.

In a statement, Providence said it was disappointed with the union’s decision to schedule the strike authorization vote.

“The Hospital is prepared to continue bargaining in good faith toward a new contract. The proposals we have made during our five months of bargaining on staffing and other important issues are strong, and demonstrate the value we place in our nurses and in our commitment to high quality care for our community,” it said.

This is the first time nurses at Providence St. Peter have negotiated a contract since Providence Health & Services merged with St. Joseph Health to become Providence St. Joseph Health in 2016.

Andy Dusablon, a nurse who is on the negotiating team, said if the vote was today, he would vote to strike.

“I don’t want to work in a place where we have to strike just to keep what we have,” he said.