Del Sol Medical Center nursing assistants stage walkout, seek $15 an hour minimum wage

EL PASO, Texas -- Del Sol Medical Center workers planned a walk out Wednesday afternoon to call on the Hospital Corporation of America to raise the minimum wage it pays some of its workers to at least $15 an hour. 

Right now 54% of workers at Del Sol and 47% at its sister hospital Las Palmas are earning less than $15 an hour, according to a union that represents healthcare workers.

The majority of these workers are certified nursing assistants who have been crucial in treating people with Covid-19 this past nearly year. 

CNA’S clean equipment, measure patients’ vital signs, transfer patients between beds and wheelchairs, record patients' health concerns and help with feeding patients meals. The union says they are essential front-line workers.

Walkouts are also slated at other HCA-owned hospitals in the region.

While these walkouts are specifically targeting HCA hospitals, its wage paid to CNAs is not dissimilar to the rest of the industry. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median pay for CNA’s in 2019 was $14.25. 

The union says the CNAs it represents are currently in the middle of contract negotiations with Del Sol.