Culinary Union workers at Valley Hospital vote to authorize strike
About 90 Culinary Union 226 members employed at Valley Hospital Medical Center have voted to authorize a strike.
In a news release, 99 percent of the members voted Friday for the strike authorization, the union said.
The union represents approximately 90 housekeeping, cooks, cashiers, kitchen workers and stewards at the hospital.
“Workers are fighting to keep their Culinary Union benefits, pension, health care, get fair wage increases, and have job security,” Ted Pappageorge, secretary-treasurer for the union, said in the Saturday release.”Workers voted today to authorize a strike and the Culinary Union will call for a strike if a good contract isn’t reached soon.”
A Valley Hospital spokesperson emailed a statement Saturday night regarding the strike authorization vote.
“We are fully prepared for a strike; this step taken by the union is simply an authorization,” the statement reads. “As we are a healthcare institution, the union is required to give the hospital a 10-day notice prior to actually striking.”
If a strike does occur, the hospital is “prepared to bring in people to staff the EVS (environmental services) and Dietary functions during the strike,” the statement said. “Our patient care services will not be interrupted or compromised.”
Carlos Muñoz, a dishwasher at the hospital for 18 years, said in the release that he voted in favor of authorizing a strike “because we need to be able to keep our benefits including health insurance for my coworkers and our families.”
Culinary Workers Union Local 226 and Bartenders Union Local 165, affiliates of UNITE HERE, represent 60,000 workers in Las Vegas and Reno.
Contact Marvin Clemons at mclemons@reviewjournal.com. Follow @Marv_in_Vegas on Twitter.
