Oregon’s largest health system has experienced a wave of new organizing in the last year  

(Portland, Ore.) – Registered nurses, medical assistants and patient services specialists employed at Providence Immediate Care Clinics in the Portland metro area voted to unionize with Oregon Nurses Association (ONA) on April 25. The 180 healthcare professionals, join more than 70 doctors, nurse practitioners and physician associates who voted to form a union under the Pacific Northwest Hospital Medicine Association (PNWHMA) in January.  

“The medical assistants at the immediate care clinics have worked alongside the RNs and providers to provide care for our communities, despite continued difficulties. Since COVID, our patient volumes, acuities, and overall workloads have continued to increase. Despite these increases, our staffing levels have decreased,” said Jenny Guthrie, medical assistant at Providence Immediate Care in Canby. The healthcare professionals are unionizing to improve the recruitment and retention of staff, to have a voice in creating fair and transparent policies, to decrease patient wait times, and to push for better safety measures that will protect patients and staff. Guthrie added, “Over the years, we have voiced our concerns regarding safety, adequate pay and benefits, and continued burnout - but the problems have persisted. Because of this, we feel it is time to unionize to allow us to have a voice and implement positive changes that will allow us to serve our communities in the best way possible. We are excited to see what the future holds.”

Overflowing ERs and overbooked primary care doctors mean that patients have had to go elsewhere for necessary care. The Providence Immediate Care Clinics have faced an increase in patient acuity and needs and have stepped up to fill the holes in the healthcare system.

“In the immediate care setting, the front desk staff, medical assistants, and nurses work as a team to provide excellent care in our community. Organizing our union together will allow us all to have a voice in the decisions that affect our ability to provide that care,” said Sarah Bea, RN at Gateway. “Together, we will be able to fight for wage transparency from Providence and parity with other healthcare entities. We will be able to prioritize workplace safety and adequate staffing, allowing us to better serve our patients. As a nurse, I am proud to be a part of a team that is willing to fight for the respect they deserve and for the tools necessary to achieve the best possible patient outcomes.”

ONA is currently bargaining five new contracts with Providence that cover Women’s Clinic RNs, Women’s Clinic providers, Home Health and Hospice professionals in the Gorge, Home Health and Hospice service and technical workers and employees in Providence’s Connections program.

PNWHMA is affiliated with AFT Healthcare and is serviced by ONA. ONA is bargaining three open contracts for PNWHMA which include hospitalists and NPs at Providence St. Vincent, cardiac advanced practice providers at St. Vincent, providers at Providence Immediate Care Clinics and emergency department providers at Providence Medford. 

On May 1, ONA-represented nurses from Providence Willamette Falls, Providence Milwaukie and Providence Medford will hold informational pickets in Oregon City and Medford demanding that management offer safe staffing, affordable health care, and competitive wages. Providence has allowed five RN contracts to expire since December 2023 and Providence Milwaukie’s contract will expire at the end of May if a deal is not reached.