For Immediate Release
March 1, 2021

Contact
Renée Saldaña
[email protected]

Victorville, Calif. – Three hundred healthcare workers at Victor Valley Global Medical Center voted to improve pandemic safety, patient care, and jobs by uniting in SEIU-United Healthcare Workers West (SEIU-UHW), a union of 97,000 healthcare workers across California. This is the sixth group of workers to join the union since the pandemic started — a strong indication of caregivers’ commitment to stronger COVID-19 safety statewide.

“We’ve been treating COVID-19 patients throughout this pandemic, but management refuses to take the necessary steps to keep patients and caregivers safe,” said Gina Barajas, a respiratory care practitioner at Victor Valley Global Medical Center. “Now we’ll have a strong voice to improve COVID-19 safety and patient care overall at our hospital — and to ensure good jobs in this community.”

The vote count was overwhelming: 98 percent of the workers voting supported joining SEIU-UHW. The vote applies to a variety of job classes, including respiratory therapists, licensed vocational nurses, certified nursing assistants, radiology technologists, food service workers, operating room and emergency room technicians, unit secretaries, transporters, and admitting clerks.

Victor Valley Global Medical Center is part of KPC Health, a for-profit, nationwide chain that generated $40 million in net profits in 2017-2018 (the most recent years on record). With this election victory, workers at six of the seven KPC Health hospitals in California are now members of SEIU-UHW: Anaheim Global Medical Center, Chapman Global, Medical Center, Hemet Global Medical Center, Menifee Global Medical Center, South Coast Global Medical Center, and Victor Valley Global Medical Center.

If you or someone you know is a healthcare worker who needs the power of a union during this pandemic and beyond, click here or email [email protected] to learn how to unite in SEIU-UHW.  

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SEIU-United Healthcare Workers West (SEIU-UHW) is one of the largest unions of hospital workers in the United States, with more than 97,000 members.