Union workers rally outside St. Luke’s hospital

Motorists may have seen hospital staff marching outside St. Luke’s Lakeview building on Tuesday.

United steelworkers local 9460 held an informational rally, calling for a fair labor contract and fair pay for tech workers at St. Luke’s.

Union staff representative Michele Fredrickson says they want the community to know they are in contract negotiations with St. Luke’s and that what they are asking for is necessary for their members, and for the overall good of the hospital and patients.

“We want to make sure that we have resources to retain our current employees, and we want to be able to recruit new people into the area making sure that we have a sustainable staff to take care of our patients.”

A few dozen union members and supporters gathered across the street from St. Luke’s Lakeview building for what they described as a rally, not a picket. Steelworkers union local 9460 represents about 140 non-nursing tech workers in the health care system.