Rally at San Diego VA Medical Center Protests Staffing Cuts, Union Attacks

San Diego VA Medical Center Rally Against Staffing Reductions and Union Rights Attacks

On Wednesday, April 16, registered nurses at the VA Medical Center in San Diego will hold a rally to protest significant staffing reductions within the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), as announced by the National Nurses Organizing Committee/National Nurses United (NNOC/NNU).

The VA secretary has confirmed plans to reduce the workforce by 72,000 to 80,000 employees. This reduction is seen as detrimental to the care provided to veterans, as an Inspector General’s report from August 2024 indicates that 82% of VA facilities are already experiencing severe nursing staff shortages. With a 30% increase in veteran enrollment, these cuts could exacerbate the situation.

“No matter who you cut from the VA, veterans are going to be affected,” stated Safiah Dhada, registered nurse and NNOC/NNU associate director at the VA Medical Center- San Diego. “If you cut housekeeping, nurses will be bagging trash, taking time away from patient care. If you cut supply techs, nurses will need to chase down supplies, delaying our veterans' care. Our veterans deserve timely care, not delays that negatively impact health outcomes.”

Nurses have reported that recent staffing cuts have led to compromised patient care, with staff having to leave patient duties to manage supplies and handle increased patient loads when short-staffed.

Event Details:

What: Rally by NNOC/NNU registered nurses, SEIU and AFGE members, and Veterans for Peace against VA staffing cuts and union rights attacks

When: Wednesday, April 16, 11:30 am - 1:30 pm

Where: VA Medical Center, 3350 La Jolla Village Dr, San Diego, CA 92161

The reduction in VA staff coincides with an ongoing dispute over union rights for federal employees. Earlier this month, NNU and other labor unions filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration over an executive order they claim undermines collective bargaining rights, affecting over a million federal employees.

"Nurses are the voices for our patients,” emphasized Andrea Johnson, a registered nurse in the medical surgical unit and NNOC/NNU director at the VA Medical Center- San Diego. “We speak up about safety concerns that may negatively impact them, and we advocate for the care they need, want, and deserve. Our collective bargaining agreements provide us protections and ease our fears against retaliation for speaking out for our patients. Eliminating our collective bargaining agreement and the protections it provides is not only an attempt to silence nurses, but also an attempt to silence our patients and deny them the care they deserve."

Nurses contend that the administration’s strategy is to underfund the VA, thereby weakening its ability to care for veterans and paving the way for privatization. The VA’s “Red Team” Executive Roundtable analysis, which highlighted $30 billion spent on private-sector care in 2023, warned that privatization could erode the VA’s care system and limit choices for veterans who prefer the VA’s direct care.

NNOC/NNU represents over 870 registered nurses at the San Diego VA Medical Center and more than 16,000 nurses at 23 VHA facilities nationwide, many of whom are veterans themselves.

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