Health Care Workers at Edgewood Sierra Hills Ratify First Contract

After a hard-fought two-year battle with a relentless anti-union employer that resulted in a strike over Christmas and a laundry list of egregious unfair labor practice charges, roughly 40 health care workers at Edgewood Sierra Hills in Cheyenne, Wyo., ratified their first union contract last month. 

The USW’s second health care contract in the state of Wyoming boasts an increase in weekend shift differential, a perfect attendance bonus, training pay, a scheduling committee, safe staffing language, and more. The agreement also raises wages by 2.75 percent over the life of the one-year contract. 

Health care workers at Edgewood Sierra Hills began organizing with the USW in 2024 and faced an aggressive anti-union campaign from management that District 11 Staff Representative Will Wilkinson described as “atrocious.” 

Workers launched a ten-day ULP strike against parent company Edgewood Healthcare over Christmas of 2024, standing together in solidarity despite interrogation from management in what was believed to be the state of Wyoming’s first-ever health care workers’ strike. 

To date, the USW has filed more than 20 unfair labor practice (ULP) charges against the employer, including refusal to bargain, retaliation against employees, unilateral workplace changes, bad faith bargaining, and more. The National Labor Relations Board has found merit in numerous charges, with many still outstanding. 

Employees represented by the agreement include nurses, housekeepers, CNAs, transporters, cooks, dining assistants, and more.