Bargaining Update 10.21.2026

Pay, Stipends, Benefits and Moonlighting 

TL;DR: Our Union’s bargaining team presented our first proposals on Compensation & Benefits article, and Moonlighting (details below). Bargaining meetings are open for observers and we had record turnout at our latest session! OHSU provided our union with no proposals or counters, but will endeavor to provide responses at our next session on November 4th.

HOU members in action

Thank you so much to all of you who showed up for our bargaining meeting watch party this past week! Over 40 residents and fellows supplemented the bargaining team as we asserted our worth and made it clear who’s involved in the fight. It was incredibly powerful to have so many of you there as we worked to negotiate our future contract. 

Our Union’s Proposals

This week (on 10/21/26), the House Officers United bargaining team and OHSU management met for their 10th bargaining session of this negotiation cycle. Our proposals this week focused on moving towards fair compensation. The high points are included here; this summary does not include all topics proposed.

• We proposed a base salary of $85k for starting PGY-1s, with incremental step increases by 5% from the base salary each PGY year
• We proposed a housing stipend of $5000
• We proposed that the education stipend be increased to $2000
• We proposed relocation reimbursement be increased to $2000, and that this could be transferable to another party if the house officer received support with relocation 
• We proposed that chief residents receive increased salary supplement in the amount of at least $750 per pay period
• We proposed that house officers competent in American Sign Language be eligible for the bilingual bonus, and that the bonus be increased to $1500 per year 
• We proposed that the meal stipend disbursement be $3600 (flat rate for all house officers in all programs, distributed at the beginning of the year). We also proposed that all transactions would be run with a 10% discount for house officers, and that there would be no daily cap
• We proposed that unused meal money would roll over, and that house officers could cash out if preferred
• We proposed that the meal stipends be adjusted for inflation 
• We proposed 5% annual increases for year 2 and 3 of the contract for salary, housing stipend, education stipend, relocation reimbursement, chief supplement, bilingual bonus, and meal stipend. However, our proposal will increase the meal stipend each year if inflation exceeds 5%.
• We proposed that retirement contributions from OHSU be increased from 3% (current) to 12% (proposal) 
• We proposed that OHSU reimburse house officers for unlimited medical license up to the cost of the limited license and for a $1000 reimbursement for specialty board certification fees
• We proposed that house officers receive incentive pay (extra pay for extra work) when appropriate and that residents providing anesthesia services after 5PM be paid an hourly rate of $150 (anesthesia late pay) 
• We proposed that current parking access be subsidized at a rate of $500 per year, and that OHSU would make a good faith effort to arrange parking arrangements for residents at off-site rotations including the VA 
• We reinforced that the proposals described here represent only minimums and that programs may provide additional incentives for best flexibility 

We proposed that policies be updated to allow in-scope moonlighting, and that GME be required to make and maintain a list of all available internal moonlighting opportunities, but that scheduling shifts is the responsibility of the resident. 

This is our first proposal that reflects the need to improve the living conditions for our members. Our goal is to get a contract that values our work, provides us the means to comfortably pay our student debt while supporting our families, and gives future residents the confidence to rank OHSU as their top choice during the match. However, no agreements were reached this week and we will need your continually growing support.

OHSU’s proposals

The OHSU team did not make any proposals or counter-proposals in this session

Next steps and call to action

• Feedback – please reach out to us if you have questions, concerns, or ideas 
• Support our team – all bargaining sessions are open to observers, but require advanced notice. They occur most Wednesday evenings for the remainder of the year. Simply respond to this email with a request to observe a certain date. 
• Get involved – join our member action team and help us build power.

Thank you again for coming out and helping to be the face of House Officers United!

In solidarity, 

House Officers United