PORT ANGELES — Olympic Medical Center and the union that represents nurses and service workers have reached an agreement after mediation on the stalled contract.
Rhonda Curry, assistant administrator of strategic marketing and communications, said the contract was approved by the Service Employees International Union Local 1199 NW on Monday, and will go before the OMC board for consideration on Feb. 6.
No details were available Thursday on the contract with nurses, housekeepers, and maintenance and cafeteria workers.
Hospital and union representatives entered formal mediation on Jan. 24 and Jan. 25 with the Public Employees Relations Committee, a state agency similar to the National Labor Relations Board.
“A contract was proposed and SEIU recommended its members ratify that agreement,” Curry said.
The union and the hospital had reached an impasse in December on a three-year contract.
The main point of contention was the union’s demand for wage parity with Seattle-area hospitals, something OMC refused to consider, saying that its wages and benefits for nurses total 95 percent of metropolitan levels.
Under OMC’s proposal in December, nurses would receive a 5 percent pay hike and longevity raise.
“We are complete in our negotiations, and feel a fair agreement was reached,” Curry said Thursday, adding that both parties had compromised.
