Alameda Health System (AHS) met with the SEIU 1021 General Unit (GU) on Wednesday, August 12, 2020 and on Friday August 14, 2020 to negotiate a new bargaining contract.
AHS is in a fiscal crisis and is facing a deficit of over $90 million for FY2021 Faced with ongoing structural financial issues in part caused by chronic under-reimbursement for the services we provide as a safety net institution serving vulnerable populations and the tremendous cost for responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, AHS is obligated to take significant action to manage this unprecedented situation. We also recognize that despite our challenges our community still needs our services more than ever.
To meet that need AHS wants to maintain the jobs of our essential health care workers and maintain services. To do so, we must reduce the increasing costs of salaries and benefits. For these reasons AHS has proposed a no wage increase for FY2021 to the general unit.
AHS values all SEIU 1021 members and recognizes they are essential to fulfilling our mission of caring, healing, teaching and serving all and requires that we work together.
AHS is hopeful that we can reach a sustainable agreement that allows us to continue to provide quality care to our community.
AHS looks forward to future bargaining sessions.