Hospital workers vote to authorize strike

Hundreds of unionized hospital workers marched from hospital to hospital Wednesday in Center City in advance of a 5 p.m. rally and strike vote at the Convention Center.The workers' contracts with Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, Hahnemann University Hospital, Temple University Health Systems, and Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, as well as other area hospitals and nursing homes in Philadelphia and its suburbs in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, expire June 30. The workers, most support staff, are represented by District 1199C of the National Union of Hospital and Health Care Employees — American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME). They overwhelmingly voted to strike starting at 6 a.m. July 1 if an agreement is not reached by then, union president Henry Nicholas said. 8 — Jane M. Von Bergen