FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 
August 9, 2024

SAN DIEGO — Hundreds of healthcare workers from across California descended on Sharp Healthcare headquarters to protest working conditions and unfair pay at the corporation’s local hospitals. The march began at 9 a.m. on Friday, August 9, near Sharp Healthcare’s corporate office at 8695 Spectrum Center Blvd. It shut down the surrounding streets, including Tech Way and Kearney Villa Road, and ended in a rally.

“Instead of listening to our concerns, Sharp executives have repeatedly violated the law by threatening, intimidating, and retaliating against healthcare workers who try to improve working conditions and unfair pay,” said Jonilyn Vargas, a phlebotomist at Sharp Grossmont Hospital. “Healthcare workers are forced to take multiple jobs to make ends meet. Far too many of us are at our breaking point. We’re not just standing up for ourselves but also for our patients, who deserve the best care possible.”

Sharp healthcare workers were joined at the march and rally by caregivers from across California, all members of SEIU-United Healthcare Workers West (SEIU-UHW). The protest kicked off a month of pickets aimed at improving care and working conditions at Sharp Healthcare locations across San Diego.

Approximately 5,000 SEIU-UHW members at Sharp Grossmont Hospital and Hospice Care, Sharp Chula Vista Medical Center, and Sharp Metropolitan Medical Campus are currently in contract bargaining with management. Sharp Healthcare workers have struggled with staffing shortages, safety concerns, and wages far below market for this region for years.

According to its financial disclosures, Sharp Healthcare made a net income of over $1.17 billion in 2020-2021. In 2022, Sharp’s CEO, Chris Howard, received $2.4 million in compensation. That same year, Sharp paid hospital executives more than $12 million in compensation, while the CEO received a pay increase of 43% since the pandemic.

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SEIU-United Healthcare Workers West (SEIU-UHW) is a healthcare justice union of more than 100,000 healthcare workers, patients, and healthcare activists united to ensure affordable, accessible, high-quality care for all Californians, provided by valued and respected healthcare workers. Learn more at www.seiu-uhw.org.