Nurses say Providence’s cost‑cutting and unsafe staffing practices put patients at risk.

Media Advisory
For: March 2, 2026

WHO: Nurses at Providence St. Joseph Medical Center (PSJMC), represented by SEIU Local 121RN

WHAT: Registered Nurses Providence St. Joseph Medical Center (PSJMC) will begin a five-day unfair labor practice strike on Monday, March 2.

WHEN: Picketing will take place daily from 7:00 AM to 12:00 PM, Monday March 2 through Friday March 6. A rally and program featuring nurses and elected officials will take place on Monday, March 2 at 9:00 AM.

Nurses will walk out on strike beginning at 7:00 AM on March 6, and will return to work at 7:00 am on Saturday, March 7.

WHERE: Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center: 501 S Buena Vista St, Burbank, CA 91505

WHY: PSJMC nurses have been bargaining for a fair contract since September 2025. Nurses say they deserve a contract that ensures safe staffing, protects them from harassment and bullying, and maintains their health benefits—but management has refused proposals on these issues. Absent guarantees of a safe and healthy working environment, nurses warn that staff retention will decline, further jeopardizing patient safety.

Rather than invest in safe-staffing, and patient safety, nurses say, Providence has pursued cost‑cutting measures that threaten the stability of the workforce. These include:

• Proposing increased healthcare costs for nurses despite rising living expenses.
• Ending the hospital’s discretionary retirement contribution, which helps nurses plan for a stable retirement.
• Planning to eliminate a long‑standing health incentive, which reduces nurses’ out of pocket healthcare costs.
• Demanding the removal of an attendance policy that protects nurses from discipline when they are sick and prevents burnout.

Nurses say these decisions shift Providence’s financial burden onto nurses, which is both unjust and unnecessary. The hospital netted $43.5 million in income in 2024 (the most recent year for which full financial data is available.)

“Break nurses are constantly pulled into full assignments, leaving patients without coverage and nurses working 12-hour shifts without breaks,” said Kevin Grellman, a Cardiac Telemetry nurse. “Some days, we barely have time to get water, use the restroom, or eat. When we raise concerns, our concerns are dismissed. Management calls it saving money—but it puts patient care at risk and violates our contract.”

Nurses say their concerns mirror those raised by healthcare workers at Providence Cedars-Sinai Tarzana Medical Center. More than 900 nurses and licensed healthcare professionals represented by SEIU 121RN ended a five day strike at that hospital on February 21. SEIU 121RN represents more than 1,000 nurses at Providence St. Joseph Medical Center.

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SEIU Local 121RN represents more than 11,000 registered nurses and other healthcare professionals in California.

This member-led organization is committed to supporting optimum working conditions that allow nurses to provide quality patient care and safety.