For immediate Release: Dec 12, 2025
Contact: Heleen Welvaart, RN-760-258-7020
Becky Street, RN, 734-718-6675
Jane McDonald, Union Representative, 760-208-9938
Union Members Ratify Agreement with NIHD
After a lengthy state mediation session on December 9, employees represented by AFSCME Local 315 voted Thursday to accept an agreement with Northern Inyo Healthcare District which resolves our disputes.
On Friday, the Union withdrew our ULP Strikes notice as well as the Unfair Practice Charge we had filed with the PERB, the state of California’s Public Employment Review Board.
The agreement includes improvements in all of the priority areas union members identified in bargaining surveys last spring.
In addition to modest cost of living increases, which were a priority for all employees, the agreement puts an end to the forced use of paid time off when the District closes services during the holidays and extends medical care for employees suffering long-term illness.
The agreement also brings standby pay into closer alignment with the local market and ensures that Technical Unit employees who train other employees are selected appropriately and also compensated.
Finally, the agreement partially addresses RN staffing concerns by affirming the importance of the bedside RN’s voice in decision making.
While the Union is pleased with the agreement, union leaders have serious concerns about the District’s behavior in bargaining and the consequences for the workforce and community at large. We set out to achieve modest improvements that maintain the District’s ability to recruit and retain skilled employees and solve some specific problems employees have been facing regarding paid time off and long-term illness. We made reasonable proposals, which should not have been this hard or taken this long to achieve.
“I’ve been on every single RN Negotiating Team since the formation of the Union in 2015,” explains Heleen Welvaart, an RN in the Rural Health Clinic. “This has been the most difficult round of negotiations I can remember. Until this year, we have never had to take a strike vote at Northern Inyo.”
Employees take their jobs seriously and care deeply about the community and patients. It’s a very difficult decision to file charges and prepare for striking at Christmas in order to be heard.
“Even though the decision to strike was difficult, it was very empowering to see how many new members came on board, and how strong and united we were together leading up to a potential ULP Strike,” said Becky Street, an RN in the PACU who is also on the bargaining team.
These negotiations were symptomatic of larger problems which need to be addressed. Morale will only improve once employees and our community can depend upon a District Leadership that demonstrates good judgement, makes better decisions, and respects its frontline employees.