Pre- Bargaining Committee Report
Thanks to all of you who returned your Pre-Bargaining Survey. From the surveys we have tabulated so far, the primary issues seem to be Salary, Pension, Health Care and Nurse/ Patient Ratios. Not a big surprise!!
Grievance Update
The delegate assembly agreed to take the contraceptive equity class action grievance to arbitration if necessary. The law requires employers to cover contraceptives to the same degree that other prescriptions are covered.
Victory!!! During the blizzard in February, some perioperative nurses were denied the use of their emergency day, while others who called in sick were required to bring a doctor's note. This was not the practice on other units, and the hospital agreed to pay those nurses who were unjustly denied the use of their accrued time.
Victory!!! In response to a class action grievance over understaffing on 6 Uris/6 East, LHH management has agreed to increase staffing on the unit to 7 nurses per shift. This grievance was successful largely because nurses on the unit made a concerted effort to document the nurse/patient ratio violations, and they showed up in force at the grievance hearing.
ER
The ER continues to be chronically understaffed and overcrowded, while hospital management refuses to acknowledge that there is a problem. Meanwhile, Carol Porter, RN, the Director of Nursing for the ER, has won the 5 Star Service Award at LHH. We don't know what criteria were used for this award, but certainly support for staff nurses was not among them.
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ICU Transition
The hospital is completing construction of two separate ICUs-the Medical ICU will move to 7 East, and the Surgical ICU will be on 8 East. The new surgical step down unit will be 8 Lachman. We are meeting with management to address the staff nurses' concerns, including rotation between the two ICUs, charge RN responsibilities, floating, and the allocation of vacation, holiday, and free time.
Floating Contract Violations
On several units, particularly CCU and PCU, management has repeatedly asked staff nurses to float while a per diem remained on the unit. NYPNU wrote a letter to management advising them that this is a direct violation of the contract, and the union will staunchly defend any nurse who is disciplined for refusing to float under these circumstances. Staff nurses on PCU have successfully used this letter to insist that the per diem be floated.
Transit Saver Program
LHH/MEETH has changed carriers for its Transit Saver Program. Check to see if you have a balance due at First Union. If so, you must submit for reimbursement by June 30th. Otherwise the balance will be rolled over to the new carrier.
Financial Planning Seminar
The financial planning seminar that NYPNU hosted on June 5th received rave reviews. If you would be interested in attending a future seminar, please let us know.
CNA
The California Nurses Association (CNA) is celebrating its 100th anniversary. Imagine, CNA was defending the rights of nurses and patients before women had the vote. We congratulate them on a century of work well done. CHEERS!
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