By MALLORY GRUBEN
Oregon Nurses Association (ONA) reached a tentative agreement Sept. 25 with Oregon Health and Science University that raises wages and improves workplace safety for almost 3,200 nurses there. The agreement came just a week after nurses voted to authorize a strike with 95% support.
The three-year agreement increases the average base wage for an OHSU nurse by $20.67 by the end of the contract. That’s a 37% boost over three years, starting with a 15% raise this year that’s retroactive to the previous contract’s June 30 expiration date.
The agreement also sets safe staffing standards, including a 1:3 nurse-to-patient ratio for acute care effective June 1, 2024. And it introduces new in-person de-escalation and assault prevention training, 24/7 metal detector screenings, and new emergency lockdown procedures, among other safety improvements. Nurses asked for those safety measures because they’ve reported an increase in assaults, gun violence, and injuries at work.
The agreement also requires OHSU to bargain with ONA over any consequences of a merger with Legacy Health System, a plan OHSU announced on Aug. 16.
