Samaritan Workers in Oregon Join SEIU, Uniting 5 Locations

About 180 workers, including nutrition services, housekeeping, and CNAs, voted to unionize with SEIU Local 49.

Published on Mar. 11, 2026

Got story updates? Submit your updates here. ›

Health care workers at Samaritan Lebanon have voted to unionize with SEIU Local 49, bringing all five Samaritan locations under one union. The vote included about 180 Oregon workers such as nutrition services, housekeeping, and Certified Nursing Assistants, who overwhelmingly chose to join the 15,000-member union.

Why it matters

Unionizing is seen as a way for workers to negotiate for better pay and benefits, as well as improve retention and create more qualified staff to serve their communities.

The details

CNA Adilson Nuñez has been organizing with his coworkers for years and said they have a good relationship with management, hoping the decision benefits both sides. Nuñez said workers are motivated to negotiate for better pay and health care, and noted that Samaritan's four other locations across the state will now receive slightly higher wages and benefits as a result of the unionization.

  • The workers voted to unionize in March 2026.
  • The union will begin negotiating its first contract later this year, alongside other Samaritan hospitals who will be bargaining their next contracts.

The players

Adilson Nuñez

A Certified Nursing Assistant who has been organizing with his coworkers for years.

SEIU Local 49

The 15,000-member union that the Samaritan workers voted to join.

Alan Dubinsky

The SEIU 49 communications director.

Samaritan Lebanon

The health care facility where the workers voted to unionize.

Samaritan

The health care organization with five locations across Oregon.

Got photos? Submit your photos here. ›

What they’re saying

“The union is something so cool because you can make decisions together with administration, and we both create something that is good for us as employees. We work together for a purpose, we work together for the same goal.”

— Adilson Nuñez, Certified Nursing Assistant (Public News Service)

“One of the ultimate goals in all of this is providing workers with a better life through their contracts with good benefits, and recognizing how that also helps the communities that they serve.”

— Alan Dubinsky, SEIU 49 Communications Director (Public News Service)

What’s next

The union will begin negotiating its first contract later this year, alongside other Samaritan hospitals who will be bargaining their next contracts.

The takeaway

This unionization effort highlights how health care workers are seeking to improve their pay, benefits, and working conditions through collective bargaining, which can in turn benefit the communities they serve through increased staff retention and qualifications.