An unconventional healthcare and dental center serving hospitality union workers officially opened last month in L.A.’s Pico-Union District.
The medical center, run by the Unite HERE Local 11 hospitality workers union in partnership with Willowbrook-based MLK Community Healthcare and the Nashville-based Dyntl chain of dental clinics, is one of a very few exclusively serving union members. Most union members use traditional primary care and dental providers.
“It’s really a place for our members, where they are welcomed and treated with respect,” said Kristin Reeg, director of the health fund at Unite HERE Local 11. “These are people who are not always treated great on the job.”
Located at 1122 W. Washington Blvd., the 15,000-square-foot health and dental center had a soft opening last summer and has been ramping up operations ever since, according to a Unite HERE Local 11 spokeswoman. The official grand opening was held on Aug. 19.
Unite HERE Local 11 is a labor union based in the adjacent Westlake district, representing more than 32,000 hospitality workers in Southern California and Arizona who work in hotels, restaurants, universities, convention centers and at airports.
Focused on dental care
The larger focus of the recently opened health center is on dental care, with 12 dental chairs and three full-time dentists. There is only one full-time physician on the medical care side, though additional clinicians are available on call if necessary.
A Unite HERE Local 11 spokeswoman said that members and their families can also obtain medical care services from other clinics operated by MLK Community Healthcare throughout South Los Angeles or from other medical providers.
The health and dental care center also include a lab for processing blood tests as well as administrative offices. There is also space for healthcare classes for hospitality union members.
The money to build out, equip and staff the center has come from the union’s healthcare fund, which is paid into by both union members and hospitality sector employers where Unite HERE Local 11 represents the workers.
Among the employers listed in the official opening announcement: Marriott International Inc. of Bethesda, Maryland; Hyatt Hotels Corp. of Chicago, Compass Hospitality of Bangkok, Thailand and University Park-based University of Southern California.
