2,000 Members at Appalachian Regional Healthcare Ratify New, Five-Year Agreement With Major Wins, Zero Concessions

Nearly 2,000 health care workers at Appalachian Regional Healthcare (ARH) ratified their new, five-year contract last week after a flood postponed their ratification date by nearly a week.

The new agreement makes significant progress on wages and benefits, including massive market adjustments, seniority wage increases of up to $2 per hour, and an additional 10 percent wage adjustment for psychiatric unit employees.

The average wage increase adjustment for members under the new agreement is approximately 18 percent.

Additional victories include getting all ARH employees back on a standardized vacation and sick time program rather than PTO days and guaranteeing that every ARH employee – including “non-benefitted” workers who do not take the company’s health insurance – otherwise receives a full benefits package for health insurance, retirement, and more.

The agreement covers workers at nine ARH locations in Southeastern Kentucky and Southern West Virginia. The USW represents Respiratory, Rad Techs, Lab Techs, LPNs, clerical staff, technicians, dietary, housekeeping, and other hourly workers at facilities located in Beckley and Summers County, W.V. as well as Morgan County, Middlesboro, Williamson, Hazard, Harlan, McDowell, and Whitesburg, K.Y.