Local 5138 Negotiation Update, April 28, 2025

Today was another unproductive day at the bargaining table with HMH.

Our team presented a comprehensive package of proposals, including an across-the-board wage increase, merit increases as a bonus, and enforceable staffing ratios for each unit.

HMH responded with a disappointing offer: only up to a 2.5% merit increase for the next three years and a complete rejection of staffing ratios. They continue to claim that staffing at SOMC is “very good” and have rejected all our proposed remedies for short staffing, such as voluntary on-call shifts and critical shift bonuses.

The union proposes shift differentials and weekend differentials, but HMH insists they won’t take effect until January 2026. We are pushing for differentials to begin within 30 days of ratification — there’s no reason to wait! HMH can provide no rationale for their reasoning to wait on implementing these differentials, we ask why, they respond, “because we said so”.

HMH continues to offer crumbs while we are fighting for what we rightfully deserve. We must stay united and strong. Together, we will demand better for ourselves, our patients, and our community.

We have one more day of bargaining before our contract expires at 7:00 am Wednesday.

Stay tuned for further updates — and be ready to take action!

Contact us at local5138@hpae.org.

In solidarity,

Your local 5138 Executive Board

Anna Pona, President
Sybil Schriever, Grievance Chair