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Dozens of unionized health care workers at Pleasant Hill-based Hospice East Bay started a weeklong strike on Monday amid what they say are service reductions and “severe” layoffs.Â
The strike at Hospice East Bay headquarters on Buskirk Avenue involves about 70 employees in various positions who are members of the National Union of Healthcare Workers.
They called the seven-day strike to protest the planned layoffs of 21 full-time employees – including the facility’s executive director – and what they allege are several labor law violations by Chapters Health System Inc.
A nonprofit hospice care network based in Florida, Chapters Health System took over operations at Hospice East Bay in October 2025.
The home care facility in Pleasant Hill will remain operating during the strike, with contingency plans in place to maintain normal service, according to a statement from Hospice East Bay. The organization also operates the Bruns House in Alamo.
Among the union’s complaints are accusations that Chapters leadership stalled bargaining sessions since taking over, and withheld merit raises. The union also filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board alleging that Chapters Health System leadership laid off two employees from union positions and offered to rehire them for the same roles without union protection.
“We’re about to be down to only two counselors, which means we can’t offer all the services we know help those in grief,” said Dawn Torre, a bereavement counselor at the hospice. “It’s painful to know that we won’t have the capacity to help families cope with the loss of a loved one. It’s not fair to anyone, and there’s no excuse for it.”
A spokesperson for Chapters Health System did not respond to press inquiries Monday.
East Bay Hospice will operate with a contingency team of clinicians who can provide necessary care, facilitate daily operations, and admit new patients, according to a statement from the organization last week ahead of the strike.
Administrative staff and physicians will be on call for any immediate care needs, and volunteer services will remain unaffected.
“As a nonprofit, patient-focused hospice provider, we are deeply disappointed by the National Union of Healthcare Workers’ plan to strike,” said Tonya Lyons, regional clinical director at Hospice East Bay. “The Hospice East Bay team continues to bargain in good faith and remains committed to reaching a fair agreement that will lay the groundwork for long-term sustainability and ensure the ability to grow into the future.”
The roughly 70 unionized employees work in positions including nurses, social workers, pharmacists, chaplains and bereavement counselors. They joined the National Union of Healthcare Workers in 2023 and have yet to secure a contract since becoming members, according to the union.
The impending layoffs will leave the hospice facility with two bereavement counselors to serve roughly 1,200 patients and family members of patients under Hospice East Bay’s care.
“We’ve lost local control of the hospice, and now we’re about to lose caregivers who help people through some of the hardest moments of their lives,” said Claire Eustice, a chaplain at the hospice. “This is a critical moment, and we’re taking a stand to protect a program that has served generations of East Bay families.”
The layoffs will be effective on Oct. 16, according to the union.
The union said Chapters Health System leadership was proposing a 2.5% raise with the ability to increase health insurance premiums for employees at any time, something the union objected to.
When Chapters Health Systems took over operations at Hospice East Bay, it folded the facility into a newly formed regional hospice network that included another in California – Hospice of Santa Cruz County – and others in Nevada and Oregon, according to the state Attorney General’s Office.
The union alleged that the organization was planning to replace Hospice East Bay’s executive director with a regional director that would oversee all facilities in the network.
The Attorney General’s Office was tasked with reviewing and approving the partnership formation under a state law that requires nonprofit hospice entities to receive extra scrutiny when changing their operating structure.
The regional network was approved in August 2025, with several stipulations, including that the facilities continue to operate as nonprofit hospice care homes certified by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and that Chapters leadership “Offer employment to staff in good standing and honor existing employment agreements, as well as provide for appropriate staffing levels required for hospice licensure and certification.”
Chapters was also required to maintain certain levels of care and specialized programs and make annual reports on compliance to the Attorney General’s Office.
– Story by Thomas Hughes, Bay City News Service
