While NUHW members at a few Providence facilities continue to bargain with the healthcare giant, in June, more than 2,000 NUHW members at Providence facilities across Northern California won new contracts that include major wage increases and reductions in healthcare costs.
Beginning in late 2023, the coordinated campaign brought together workers from five hospitals — Santa Rosa Memorial and Petaluma Valley in Sonoma County, Queen of the Valley in Napa County, and St. Joseph Eureka and Redwood Memorial in Humboldt County — who committed to standing together. In June 2025, after three days of nonstop bargaining and the looming threat of a five-day strike, they secured strong agreements across the board.
But while these contracts represent a significant victory, Providence is already violating and undermining them.
In Humboldt County, management stopped paying the 14 percent differential that per diem workers receive in lieu of benefits. In Santa Rosa, administrators attempted to block union stewards from attending disciplinary meetings — an outright violation of workers’ Weingarten rights.
At the same time, other NUHW members at Providence are still in negotiations.
Registered nurses at Petaluma Valley Hospital have been bargaining with Providence since March and have had to take collective action to enforce key provisions of their existing contract. Although they had previously won language limiting the hospital’s ability to cut their hours when the patient census drops, Providence began violating the agreement almost immediately. Now, the hospital is seeking to eliminate all worker protections against Temporary Work Reductions. In July, nurses held an informational picket to protest the violations — one nurse reported losing more than $7,000 in take-home pay since March alone because of the work reductions.
More than 100 end-of-life care workers at Hospice of Petaluma and Memorial Hospice in Santa Rosa have been in negotiations for two years. In July they held a two-day strike to demand progress. These members are especially concerned about Providence’s recent announcement of a joint venture with Compassus — a private equity-owned company with a poor track record of providing care — in which Compassus will be responsible for operating the hospices. Workers fear that Compassus will gut patient care protocols, increase caseloads, and reduce the time caregivers can spend with patients and their families.Meanwhile, NUHW members at Providence Healdsburg, who voted to unionize earlier this year, have just begun bargaining their first contract. These caregivers are fighting for wages that reflect their years of service, along with benefits and a 401(k) match comparable to those at other unionized Providence facilities in Sonoma County. Their first bargaining session took place in late July.
