UNAP, Local 5051 gears up for negotiations at HCRS
Local 5051’s contract with HealthCare & Rehabilitation Services of Southeastern Vermont [HCRS] expires on June 30, 2009. The Local, therefore, has begun preparing for negotiations. Contract surveys will be mailed out to the membership soon. The surveys will be used to form the basis of the Local’s contract proposals. At the same time, Local leaders, including Local Chairperson Joyce Dion, continue to lobby hard in Montpelier in an effort to deal with a number of budgetary challenges at the state, and therefore, the HCRS level.
Northern RI UNAP fights on at Landmark/RHRI
As was reported in the last edition of The Flame, Landmark Medical Center is under the control of a Special Master who was appointed by Judge Silverstein, Superior Court Judge in Providence, to 1] stabilize the Hospital financially, 2] work to turn the Hospital around and 3] otherwise oversee the day-to-day operations of the Hospital.
The current contract between the Local 5067 and Landmark remains in effect until September 30, 2009. The Local continues to meet with the Special Master regularly to stress the importance of honoring the contract and making sure that Landmark comes out of this process as a full service hospital. The latest communication from Landmark is that Caritas Christi, a Catholic hospital system based in Massachusetts, is considering a potential arrangement whereby Landmark would become part of the Caritas network. There are currently six hospitals in their network, four of which are unionized.
Meanwhile, Local 5067 and RHRI have agreed to extend their contract through June 30, 2009.
Kent Hospital nurses off to a great start
The hard working nurses leading the newly formed Union at Kent Hospital have already developed and approved a Local Constitution, elected officers and a negotiating team, prepared most of their initial bargaining proposals and begun negotiating a new first contract. The leadership expects to have a new contract in place later this spring.
UNAP Local 5082 gears up for negotiations at Memorial Hospital of RI
The Memorial Hospital UNAP has begun gearing up for negotiations to replace their current contract which expires on August 1, 2009. The Local plans to distribute contract surveys to all members in the next few weeks. Once the surveys are returned and reviewed, the Local will begin drafting contract proposals.
If the negotiations this year are anything like they were in 2006, the Local and Hospital management are in for a ride. In 2006, the Hospital was found guilty of violating the National Labor Relations Act when it, among other things, forced members to take off their union buttons. The labor dispute that year, which was fought over a number of issues, including mandatory overtime, led to the passage of a state law that bans mandatory overtime in RI.
RI Hospital UNAP: Protecting members’ jobs during tough times
After numerous meetings with members and management, the RI Hospital UNAP succeeded in ensuring that no pediatric RNs lost their jobs or hours as a result of a downsizing at Hasbro Children’s Hospital caused by falling in-patient volume. The local has also been working to protect the jobs of two very senior LPNs who were laid off from the Southern NE Rehab Center, which is a joint venture between RIH and St. Joseph Hospital.
Fatima Hospital UNAP faces new challenges
On the heels of its contract battle last summer and fall, Local 5110 is facing new challenges. The new contract includes breakthrough staffing language that allows the Local to arbitrate any instance where the hospital fails to staff to the levels reported to the DOH if the hospital’s judgment in that regard is unacceptable or if they fail seek volunteers to fill holes in the schedule.
St. Joseph’s also recently announced their plans to affiliate with Roger Williams Medical Center. The Local will be reviewing the 27,000 page application that has been filed with the Department of Health and the AG to make sure that quality of care, breadth of services, and job security are not overlooked.
St. Joseph management has also recently imposed pay and benefit concessions on non-union employees. The Local has indicated that, in addition to agreements reached in negotiations, it will work with the Hospital to reduce ER wait times and length of stay, and improve patient satisfaction scores.
Putnam nurses mediate new contract
The school nurses in Putnam, Connecticut, who are represented by UNAP, Local 5202, went into mediation this past winter and came out with a new contract. The new agreement expires on June 30, 2011. A compromise was reached with respect to medical insurance coverage and wages. In particular, the nurses agreed to change medical insurance but at the same time negotiated successfully for additional step increases for all nurses.
The Homestead Group settles contract
UNAP Local 5068 at The Homestead Group signed a one year contract. The local will prepare their negotiating team and membership now, in anticipation of returning to the bargaining table in several months, to negotiate a successor contract in very difficult economic times.
Brattleboro Retreat - Give me a break!
Most union contracts provide for meal periods and paid breaks including the contract at the Brattleboro Retreat. The failure of the employer to provide paid breaks to employees has precipitated a grievance that has been scheduled for arbitration. The employer’s position is that one only gets breaks when they can. How about employees coming to work on time only when they can?
UNAP Local 5050 at Youth Services ratifies one year contract extension
UNAP Local 5050, which represents members at Youth Services Inc. in Brattleboro, Vermont, recently ratified a one year contract extension that runs through September 30, 2009. The extension calls for a 3% raise retroactive to October, 2008, and additional raises for other employees who were in need of a market adjustment.
Copley Hospital UNAP arbitrates job posting
In the most recent contract negotiations, the Union agreed to allow the Hospital to post a position that is divided between two units -- specifically setting forth the two units and the weekend and holiday obligation. But the hospital took this agreement a step further claiming that they may post a .3 FTE in the ED and let anyone add it to their current FTE without determining specifically where the holiday and weekend obligations fall. The issue is currently before an arbiter awaiting a decision.
Westerly Hospital - Administration paying members not to work
In a long series of grievance victories, The Westerly Hospital is paying members not to work. In a number of cases, heavy handed suspensions have been reversed, causing payment to employees for time lost on suspension. In other cases, employees who were improperly called off have been paid for work they did not do but should have been allowed to do. And in another series of cases, employees kept out of work pending an employee health evaluation have been paid when the employee was ready and able to return to work but the employee health office couldn’t be bothered seeing the employee in a timely fashion.
State nurses adding work opportunities
The State-employed Nurses are advocating for legislation that will allow retired State nurses to return to work per diem under a higher annual earning cap. The current cap was put in place years ago and is outdated, severely limiting the number of hours retirees can work per diem. On another front, the Medicaid waiver program has generated 7 new RN positions. The positions are needed to implement the new provisions of the waiver.