Registered Nurses Say Patient Safety Sparks Today’s UCI Medical Center Rally

UC Irvine Medical Center in Orange is among seven University of California hospitals that are scheduled to be the sites of protests by registered nurses today.

The rallies across California are aimed at drawing attention to the hospitals prioritizing profits over patient care, according to the the California Nurses Association/National Nurses United (CNA/NNU).

The CNA represents more than 14,000 RNs at five UC medical centers, 10 student health centers and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

The RNs have been bargaining a new contract since May. The CNA claims membership has sought provisions to support safe staffing, patient care and workplace conditions that management has rejected while simultaneously demanding more than 60 takeaways to the current contract that expired on Sept. 30.

“RNs who work for the University of California stand united in our commitment to provide the highest standard of care for our patients,” says UC Irvine RN Maureen Berry in a CNA statement. “We are opposed to UC’s dozens of bargaining takeaways that erode staffing protections, meal and break coverage, education benefits and much more. We will continue to demand that UC put the public good at the forefront as nurses do each and every day.”

Nurses and their supporters will begin gathering at 11 a.m. at UCI Medical Center, 101 The City Drive South, Orange, with their hourlong rally scheduled to start at noon.

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