Hospital Housekeepers End Month-Long Strike

Hospital environmental services (EVS) staff and other workers at Cabell Huntington Hospital in Huntington, West Virginia, approved a new contract this week that ended an almost month-long strike, West Virginia Public Broadcasting reported.

About 900 housekeepers, lab technicians, and other employees—members of Service Employees International Union (SEIU) District 1199—walked off the job on November 3 seeking better pay. Current and retired workers also were seeking to keep employer-paid health care benefits.

Union members accepted the hospital’s latest offer Wednesday night in a close vote. The new three-year contract includes annual wage increases and better pay for late-night and overtime shifts. However, retirees over age 65 will lose their employer-based health insurance plans and younger retirees will have to pay to keep their plans.

Current workers will start paying health care premiums in 2023. The insurance premiums will be offered on a tiered system so they will be more affordable for lower-income workers.