Health care workers march to protest proposed job cuts
By Chris Metinko, CONTRA COSTA TIMES
Posted on Tue, Aug. 31, 2004

OAKLAND -Warning that proposed personnel cuts will result in compromised patient care, nearly 500 Alameda County Medical Center health care workers took part in a one-day work stoppage Monday.

They were protesting plans to eliminate nearly 200 more jobs.

"We are out here to demonstrate to them that without health care workers there is no health care," said John Vallardita, who helped lead the rally of Service Employees International Union workers in front of Oakland's Highland Hospital.

Three large labor groups, SEIU Locals 250, 535 and 616, organized workers at Highland, juvenile hall and John Psychiatric Pavilion, as well as Fairmont Hospital in San Leandro to demonstrate against proposed cuts suggested by the consulting group Cambio.

Cambio has been advising the medical center since February on how to get a handle on its projected $73 million budget deficit. The proposed 200 layoffs, the first of which could come as early as next month, would be in addition to the more than 300 positions eliminated in the past year.

"It's amazing they would try and cut us even further," said Brad Cleveland, spokesman for SEIU 616. "We're here today trying to knock some sense into the board of trustees (of the medical center) and (county) supervisors."

Those at the rally Monday said the new layoffs would cripple patient care at a time when money from a new health care sales tax offers hope for improved services.

"Anyone who says cutting staff will not affect patient care is lying," said Kuwaza Imara, a registered nurse who took part in the Highland rally.

Mike Brown, a spokesman for the medical center, said the center enacted a type of "emergency plan" Monday, bringing in nurses from outside agencies to help deal with the walkout. He added that despite union claims, the center would not sacrifice patient care to help ease its deficit.

"Quality patient acre is our first goal here," Brown said. "We don't need to prove our creditability on that to anyone."

The daylong walkout began at 12:01 a.m. Monday and was scheduled to last until midnight.

An Alameda County superior court judge had ruled Friday that the walkout could take place despite management's assertion the strike would present an "imminent threat to public safety and patient care."

After that ruling, center management closed its clinics Monday in anticipation of the walkout and announced all elective surgeries scheduled during the job action would be canceled.

The center is a network of public health care facilities in Alameda County, including Highland and Fairmont hospitals and three clinics in Oakland, Hayward and Newark. The network serves an average of 1,600 patients per day.

Reach Chris Metinko at 925-847-2125 or cmetinko@cctimes.com.