News and Updates

Our union has been impact bargaining with OHSU because both parties did not foresee this as a taxable benefit.

Dear Fellow House Officers,

Below is in an important update on meal money:

Welcome to all the new interns, residents, and fellows who started at OHSU this week!  We hope you'll join us!

What did we win in our first contract?

  • An added week of vacation (4 weeks total)
  • Housing stipend ($2,205 this year)
  • Relocation reimbursement ($1,000)
  • Equiptment/materials reimbursement ($750 this year)
  • Step 3 reimbursement
  • Stable, predictable pay increases A transparent process for dispute resolutions, and more!

What have we done since then?

As negotiated in our recent agreement over the pay rates for academic year 2023-2024, we’ll be re-opening the full collective bargaining agreement for renegotiation no later than the end of July. HOU is looking for a cross-section of house officers to participate in the negotiations. This involves helping craft proposals and meeting with management to negotiate around issues like pay, PTO, the housing stipend, and more.

A quick update on our recent disussions with management regarding moonlighting:

OHSU management has confirmed that, as of now, all OHSU programs that offer moonlighting opportunities are paying residents at the same rate as similarly qualified faculty.  Further, we have udpated our agreement with management to include new language that ensures this continues to be the case going forward. 

The agreement has been updated as follows: “House Officers will be paid the same rate as similarly qualified faculty for moonlighting shifts”

We’re pleased to announce that we’ve reached an agreement with OHSU regarding a pay increase for the 2023-2024 academic year.  We did not get everything we wanted, but we believe this agreement represents a significant improvement over management’s original offer of a 5% increase and nothing else

At our last general membership meeting, we passed a resolution to get our dues money working for members.

The first is a hardship fund. This fund was set up to provide small cash disbursement to members who encounter unexpected financial difficulties. To learn more about this fund and how you can apply, click here.

We remain at the bargaining table with OHSU regarding our 2023-2024 salaries. Their latest offer is a 7% salary increase, plus a $250 “lump sum” to be paid at the conclusion of the 2023-2024 academic year. Compared to their last offer, this is an increase of just 0.4% for a PGY1. We know this is not what our members deserve, particularly those with children or who support other family members, and we are working on HOU’s counteroffer.

We're excited to announce that we've just signed a new Letter of Agreement (LOA) with OHSU Administration regarding moonlighting.  Formerly, moonlighting in inpatient settings was restricted in our contract due to medicare regulations. Those regulations have changed, and the new LOA has ammended our contract accordingly to allow for increased moonlighting opportunites for our members. Many of us are financially stressed and welcome the opportunity to perform this work and earn some extra money.

TL;DR

  • Please share your stories about living in Portland on an OHSU salary

  • Send your stories to your union secretary, Aly Dubrovsky (Psychiatry) at [email protected]

  • Let us know whether we may include your name (anonymous is okay too!), and whether your story may be shared at the bargaining table and/or with the general public