We are front-line care providers at St. Charles Hospital in Bend, Oregon, organizing a union in our workplace. We are phlebotomists, ER Techs, CNAs, food service workers and more. Some of us perform direct patient care, and others provide vital services, from sterilizing equipment to preparing patients’ food to cleaning the rooms they heal in. Every one of us contributes directly to the health and well being of patients. We Are St. Charles!
From the beginning, St. Charles and all of it’s managers and employees have prided ourselves on being an essential part of the larger Bend community. But the hospital administration has long left part of our community behind. They’ve cut costs in small and large ways, without our input, disrespecting us as workers, and endangering the quality of care we provide. They’ve made it harder and harder to make a living, raise a family, obtain healthcare for ourselves, and plan a career in this community.
By coming together as a union, we hope to bring positive change to our working lives, and gain a voice at work. Through our organizing efforts, we hope to achieve an effective partnership with St. Charles management that will help ensure our success in meeting the many challenges our community faces. We believe that involving us in decisions that affect this hospital’s financial viability and quality of patient care will improve the health of the community as a whole, and restore what’s been lost at St. Charles.