Sep 13, 2017; Hollywood, FL, USA; Healthcare workers walking down streets filled with emergency equipment near Memorial Regional Hospital after five people reportedly died and at least 120 people were evacuated at The Rehabilitation Center in Hollywood Hills due to intense heat and no power fin the days following Hurricane Irma. Mandatory Credit: Jack Gruber-USA TODAY
San Diego, California – More than 600 technical employees at Rady Children’s Hospital have voted to authorize a strike, signaling growing frustration among the hospital’s frontline workforce as contract negotiations drag on with no resolution in sight.
The vote, taken by members of the United Nurses of Children’s Hospital (UNOCH), Teamsters Local 1699, does not automatically trigger a work stoppage. Instead, it gives union leadership the authority to call a strike if talks fail to produce an agreement before the current contract expires on July 5. By law, the union must provide the hospital with a 10-day notice before any strike begins.
Hospital administrators acknowledged the strike authorization in a statement, emphasizing their commitment to reaching a “fair and timely agreement.” But union leaders argue that the time for platitudes has passed.
“This vote wasn’t about walking away from our work. It’s about fighting to protect it,” said Lee Woolridge, Tech Director for the union. He and other union leaders say Rady Children’s continues to underpay and overburden technical workers—staff whose responsibilities include everything from respiratory therapy and radiology to lab testing, pharmacy support, and surgical assistance.
“These workers are deeply committed to their patients, but they cannot continue to carry the burden of short staffing, low wages, and rising costs while the hospital turns a blind eye,” said Katie Langenstrass, the union’s executive director.
The strike vote reflects deeper tensions at one of California’s most respected pediatric hospitals, and it echoes last year’s walkout by more than 1,600 Rady nurses. Taken together, the labor unrest points to a system straining under the pressures of post-pandemic care, rising costs, and a workforce increasingly unwilling to accept the status quo.
Many of Rady’s technical staff say they are being pushed out of San Diego by soaring rents and stagnant wages. Others point to high employee turnover as a major threat to patient care. Jennifer Pratt, a radiology technologist, said the instability affects everything from safety protocols to the morale of remaining staff.
“Many of us are being pushed farther and farther from the communities we serve, or we’re watching our coworkers leave for better-paying jobs at other hospitals,” Pratt said.
Bargaining is set to resume on Tuesday, July 1. Whether a strike materializes may depend on whether hospital leadership takes the vote as a bargaining chip—or a breaking point.
