University of California RNs Reach Tentative Agreement, Strike Canceled

Tentative Agreement Reached: UC Nurses' Strike Called Off

The University of California and the California Nurses Association/National Nurses United (CNA/NNU) have reached a tentative agreement on a new contract, impacting over 25,000 registered nurses. This development has led to the cancellation of the planned sympathy strikes scheduled for November 17 and 18, which were intended to support AFSCME 3299. Negotiations have been ongoing since June.

Significant patient protections have been secured as part of the agreement, including measures against the excessive use of floating and the implementation of safeguards concerning artificial intelligence. Kristan Delmarty, an RN at UCLA Santa Monica and member of the UC bargaining team, emphasized the importance of these victories. "University of California RNs organized for and won important patient protections at the bargaining table," Delmarty stated. "Going into this round of bargaining, it was our priority to ensure UC nurses were given the resources to care for our patients and ourselves after years of short-staffing and under-resourcing. We achieved our goal and now we stand together with our AFSCME colleagues, whose essential work demands the same resources guaranteed by a fair contract."

While the strikes have been called off, numerous nurses plan to join AFSCME picket lines during their off-duty hours as a gesture of solidarity. The tentative agreement will be put to a vote by the UC nurses later this week.

California Nurses Association/National Nurses United represents more than 100,000 members across over 200 facilities in California, and over 225,000 registered nurses nationwide, making it the largest and fastest-growing union and professional association of registered nurses in the United States.