A new four-year contract between the United Nurses & Allied Professionals and RI Hospital was ratified on Friday, July 1 by a vote of 944 to 260, over the course of five membership meetings held at the Crowne Plaza in Warwick.

The new contract covers more than 2,200 Registered Nurses and allied health professionals.  Among the most significant provisions of the agreement are:

• No layoff of employees with greater than five years of service for the life of the agreement.
• Wage increases ranging from 5% - 16% over the next four years (depending on current wage rates and length of service)
• No increase in employee health insurance contribution rates for the next four years.
• Expanded opportunities for employees to effectively address safety and quality concerns.
• The establishment of a “preferred” health care network to encourage employees to use Lifespan facilities, whenever possible.  (This network is expected to be a precursor to a Lifespan “health plan” that may be offered to other Rhode Island employers in the future.)

Union President Helene Macedo, a Registered Nurse who has worked at RI Hospital for 20 years, credited the solidarity of UNAP members and said, “The bad economy, combined with an uncertain future, led us to place a priority on securing our members’ jobs, wages, and health care costs.  We are pleased that we were able to address these important issues, and that our members have given us their vote of approval by such a wide margin.  We look forward to continuing our ongoing efforts to make RI Hospital the very best it can be – for our staff and our patients.”