Friday, May 23, 2014

CONTRACT RATIFIED!

The Union would like to inform you that the new contract has been ratified.  The vote was 364-106. Thanks for your hard work and all of your support through this process.  

Your new contract goes into effect now.  The holiday premium increase goes into effect with the next holiday (Memorial Day).  The pay increases go into effect with the beginning of the next pay period (June 1st).   Please contact us with any questions.  

Thank you again, and have a great Memorial Day Weekend!

Your Committed Bargaining Team,

Vicky Hickey
Lori Haggard
Molly Chase
Krista Schulte
Pat Meade
Pam Buckley
Pierre Cinelli





ILLINOIS NURSES ASSOCIATION
The Nurses Union at St Joseph

Tuesday, May 20, 2014

Management Coughs Up Auditorium A for Contract Vote!

In a positive development, the Union has been able to secure Auditorium A in the hospital for the contract ratification vote! We believe this will help more members be able to vote with minimal inconvenience. 

The voting times remain 6 AM to 9 AM, 1 PM to 4 PM, and 5 PM to 8 PM on Thursday and Friday. Ballots will be counted on Friday at 8 PM. 

The ballot will offer two choices: whether to accept the tentative agreements or to reject them and go on strike. You do not want someone else making this important decision for you and must make every effort to cast your vote.

Below is a summary of the contract changes.  We will have the actual contract language at the vote.  Bargaining team members will be on hand to answer any questions you may have.

SUMMARY (* indicates items secured or improved since the membership rejection)

Wages: 2014--Placement on an improved, union-proposed grid to address inequities or 2%, whichever is greater*
               2015—2.0%
               2016—2.5%*
Call pay:  If a nurse is scheduled to be on call and has her/his shift extended by at least one hour (even if s/he doesn’t leave the facility or punch out/in), the time beyond the shift will be paid at time and a half.*  If a nurse 60 years old or older wants to be exempted from call, s/he must inform her/his manager.  Once s/he is exempted, she remains exempted unless s/he agrees otherwise.
Holidays:  Holiday premium will increase to 150%.  Starting in 2015, night shift will celebrate holidays on the actual holiday instead of the day before.
Staffing:  The union will appoint four nurses (up from three) to the Staffing and Acuity Committee.  The Committee will meet monthly until July 2014, then every other month (instead of quarterly now).  The Union and management will alternate creating the agenda.  If more than five ADOs are filed by a unit within a month, that unit’s staffing will be reviewed.  All ADOs will receive a written response.*
HE: Nurses can volunteer for HE before agency.  If a nurse agrees, she may be placed on voluntary standby instead of HE (earning $3.50/hour) and still use PTO for any lost hours.*  There still is no mandatory standby.*  If a nurse is on voluntary standby and is called in, s/he must report within 90 minutes.
Temporary Reassignment (pulling): Nurse will be given 60 minute notice prior to being pulled (no notice required now).  Establish CCRTs’ first assignment as their “home unit” (this is necessary because a nurse cannot be pulled more than once except back to their home unit). No pulling on holidays.*
Layoff/recall:  Increase notice of layoff from two weeks to 30 days.  Increase recall from layoff rights from 6 months to one year.
Reporting absences: A nurse can call in up to two hours before her/his shift instead of the currently required two and a half hours.
Work schedules:  Hard copies of work schedules will be posted upon the request of staff.  Long-term changes to patterns schedules will require the manager to seek volunteers first, then by inverse seniority.
Discipline: Increase notice of investigatory meetings from 24 hours to two business days.  Management will provide the reason for the investigation and evidence at the meeting.
Non-discrimination:  Prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation.
Probation:  Decrease the probationary period from 120 days to 90 days.  Allow probationary employees access to the grievance procedure (except for termination during probationary period).
Labor-Management meetings: Agenda items must be submitted 7 days in advance to the union and management.
Union business leave:  Allow for a 90 day leave for union business (none now).
Tuition reimbursement: Extend tuition reimbursement to IHR I and II for BSN (50%).  Eliminate tuition reimbursement for Master’s for IHR III.
Clinical Pathways: 1/2% bonus of year’s earnings for participating in certain activities and having certain education/training.
Overtime: Management agrees to assign mandatory overtime in accord with the Hospital Licensing Act.*
BSN requirement:  Only new hires without a BSN will have to start towards their degree within 6 months of hire and complete the program within 3 years.*
Insurance eligibility for IHR: An IHR May be eligible for health insurance as a result of the Affordable Care Act. If s/he takes it, her/his pay will be set at the rate of other, non-IHR nurses.
Eliminate Weekend Program.
Bereavement leave:  Remove benefit for IHR III.
Extended Illness bank: EIB remains protected by the contract*, but the PTO “deductible” increases to 32 hours. Excess PTO can no longer be rolled over into EIB.
Union Access: Limited to “business” hours.
Contract length: Three year term.

Monday, May 19, 2014

Contract Vote on Thursday and Friday

This morning, the union notified St. Joe's management that all of the mandatory bargaining subjects have been resolved and that the union is going to present the tentative agreements to its membership on Thursday and Friday for your consideration. 

Management has been trying to force the union bargaining team to give up our unfair labor practice complaints that have been filed with the National Labor Relations Board over their illegal infringement of our rights. They have also demanded that we promise to not file any more unfair labor practice complaints (even if they fire a member of the bargaining team!) and they want us to withdraw a request for information we have made related to staffing.

There are certain things that either side can ask for in negotiations, but that they can't make the other side bargain them. The National Labor Relations Act refers to these things as "permissive subjects of bargaining" (the others—like wages and benefits—are “mandatory subjects”) and the demands mentioned above that management is insisting on are permissive subject proposals. These are the only items still left on the table. 

We believe management is trying to avoid reaching an agreement by insisting on acceptance of permissive proposals. They don’t like this approach we are taking and may try to sabotage the process, but we are not going to let them delay the contract any further. There are no unresolved mandatory subject proposals and, therefore, we are ready for you to vote. 

We wish management would cooperate and provide us rooms in the hospital to have the vote, but they haven't done so at this time. So, we are going to hold the vote just a block away at the Painters Union Hall at 100 Republic Avenue on Thursday and Friday.  We know the location is not ideal, but it is important that you have your vote counted, so please join us there. 

The voting times will be 6 AM to 9 AM, 1 PM to 4 PM, and 5 PM to 8 PM. Ballots will be counted on Friday at 8 PM. The ballot will offer two choices: whether to accept the tentative agreements or to reject them and go on strike. You do not want someone else making this important decision for you and must make every effort to cast your vote.

Below is a summary of the contract changes.  We will have the actual contract language at the Painters Hall.  Bargain team members will be on hand to answer any questions you may have.

SUMMARY (* indicates items secured or improved since the membership rejection)

Wages: 2014--Placement on an improved, union-proposed grid to address inequities or 2%, whichever is greater*
               2015—2.0%
               2016—2.5%*

Call pay:  If a nurse is scheduled to be on call and has her/his shift extended by at least one hour (even if s/he doesn’t leave the facility or punch out/in), the time beyond the shift will be paid at time and a half.*  If a nurse 60 years old or older wants to be exempted from call, s/he must inform her/his manager.  Once s/he is exempted, she remains exempted unless s/he agrees otherwise.
Holidays:  Holiday premium will increase to 150%.  Starting in 2015, night shift will celebrate holidays on the actual holiday instead of the day before.
Staffing:  The union will appoint four nurses (up from three) to the Staffing and Acuity Committee.  The Committee will meet monthly until July 2014, then every other month (instead of quarterly now).  The Union and management will alternate creating the agenda.  If more than five ADOs are filed by a unit within a month, that unit’s staffing will be reviewed.  All ADOs will receive a written response.*
HE: Nurses can volunteer for HE before agency.  If a nurse agrees, she may be placed on voluntary standby instead of HE (earning $3.50/hour) and still use PTO for any lost hours.*  There still is no mandatory standby.*  If a nurse is on voluntary standby and is called in, s/he must report within 90 minutes.
Temporary Reassignment (pulling): Nurse will be given 60 minute notice prior to being pulled (no notice required now).  Establish CCRTs’ first assignment as their “home unit” (this is necessary because a nurse cannot be pulled more than once except back to their home unit). No pulling on holidays.*
Layoff/recall:  Increase notice of layoff from two weeks to 30 days.  Increase recall from layoff rights from 6 months to one year.
Reporting absences: A nurse can call in up to two hours before her/his shift instead of the currently required two and a half hours.
Work schedules:  Hard copies of work schedules will be posted upon the request of staff.  Long-term changes to patterns schedules will require the manager to seek volunteers first, then by inverse seniority.
Discipline: Increase notice of investigatory meetings from 24 hours to two business days.  Management will provide the reason for the investigation and evidence at the meeting.
Non-discrimination:  Prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation.
Probation:  Decrease the probationary period from 120 days to 90 days.  Allow probationary employees access to the grievance procedure (except for termination during probationary period).
Labor-Management meetings: Agenda items must be submitted 7 days in advance to the union and management.
Union business leave:  Allow for a 90 day leave for union business (none now).
Tuition reimbursement: Extend tuition reimbursement to IHR I and II for BSN (50%).  Eliminate tuition reimbursement for Master’s for IHR III.
Clinical Pathways: 1/2% bonus of year’s earnings for participating in certain activities and having certain education/training.
Overtime: Management agrees to assign mandatory overtime in accord with the Hospital Licensing Act.*
BSN requirementOnly new hires without a BSN will have to start towards their degree within 6 months of hire and complete the program within 3 years.*
Insurance eligibility for IHR: An IHR May be eligible for health insurance as a result of the Affordable Care Act. If s/he takes it, her/his pay will be set at the rate of other, non-IHR nurses.
Eliminate Weekend Program.
Bereavement leave:  Remove benefit for IHR III.
Extended Illness bank: EIB remains protected by the contract*, but the PTO “deductible” increases to 32 hours. Excess PTO can no longer be rolled over into EIB.
Union Access: Limited to “business” hours.
Contract length: Three year term.


Tuesday, May 13, 2014

Union Continues to Seek Solutions to Staffing Crisis; Management Continues to Say "No"



Tomorrow, the Union heads back to the bargaining table to fight for better staffing. We have made a number of proposals to address your concerns.  Despite management's refusal to adequately address the issue,  we have modified our proposals in the hopes of getting a deal.

As part of the solution, we had proposed a free charge to be available for unit coverage and support.  When management said "no", we proposed that charge nurses should at least be bargaining unit nurses so they don't have to juggle that assignment with management responsibilities.  Management said they wouldn't increase staff to make that happen, so we proposed making the APCMs bargaining unit nurses.  Relieve them of their management duties so they can provide 100% of their time to patient care.  Again, management has said no.

We will continue to seek creative solutions to the staffing crisis, but management will continue to say "no" until they hear from you!

Wednesday, May 7, 2014

Throughout Months of Negotiations Management Fails to Talk About Plan for Schedule Changes

The Union learned this week about a management plan to implement new pattern schedules even on units where pattern schedules already exist.  Nurses on PCU were told yesterday that management intends to replace their current pattern schedules with different five-week rotations.  Nurses were told that it would not be possible to retain their old patterns and that everyone would have to select new ones.  Nurses were also told that this was only the beginning and that the changes would be rolled out house-wide.

Supposedly, the change is to address staffing problems.  Despite the Union pressing management to take safe staffing seriously for more than three months, management never once hinted at their intent to make these changes, nor did they ever make any proposals on the matter despite having a legal obligation to bargain over it.

At the negotiations session today, the union demanded that management bargain over the issue.  It took a heated exchange to get management to bring someone in to explain what they were doing, why they were doing it, and how the intended to do it.  The union is still waiting for information necessary to bargain over the issue.

There appears to be no end to the management stall tactics--from unfair labor practices, to targeting union leaders to the last minute introduction of new issues.  The Negotiating Team has sacrificed many hours of personal time to get a good contract, but we need your help to get this done.  Tell management to stop stalling and address safe staffing so we can get the contract done!

Thursday, May 1, 2014

St. Joe's Violates Employee Rights

St. Joe nurses file complaints with national labor board

Published: Tuesday, April 29, 2014 10:50 p.m. CDT
JOLIET – A union nurses association says Presence Saint Joseph Medical Center engaged in unlawful actions against its bargaining team in Joliet, an allegation the hospital says isn't true.

Illinois Nurses Association members are engaged in contract negotiations with administrators at Presence Saint Joseph. On Monday, association officials filed with the National Labor Relations Board an unfair labor practice complaint against the Joliet hospital, saying the hospital refused to release one of its union members for a scheduled contract negotiation meeting last Friday, a meeting that ultimately was canceled.

An information officer with the Chicago branch of the National Labor Relations Board confirmed Tuesday the office had received the complaint. The complaint also alleges the hospital conducted unlawful surveillance against a member when that person distributed union information outside work hours.

Lisa Lagger, Presence Saint Joseph spokeswoman, responded in an email that the unfair labor practice charges are without merit and create an unproductive distraction. 

The nurses association canceled a bargaining session scheduled for Friday when one of its members did not properly plan his time off, she wrote.

“Multiple alternatives to accommodate the staffing needs of his very busy unit were offered, but these options were turned down,” Lagger wrote in the email.

In the complaint, the union alleges that on or about April 22, Presence Saint Joseph hospital officials violated the National Labor Relations Act by unilaterally changing the practice of bargaining unit members attending collective bargaining sessions.

The complaint claims that on that same day, hospital officials engaged in unlawful surveillance and photographing of protected union bannering activity. On April 22, union nurses had gathered in an open rally in Joliet to promote safer nurse staffing levels at the hospital.

The complaint also stated that, last Friday, hospitals officials – with the use of security guards – engaged in unlawful surveillance of union members when they distributed union literature outside of work hours and in a non-work area.

Chris Martin, Illinois Nurses Association spokesman, said the actions that hospital officials have taken are against federal law and the union hopes the National Labor Relations Board will agree.

“We’re confident that we will prevail,” he said.

Lagger said another negotiation session is scheduled for Wednesday.

http://www.theherald-news.com/2014/04/29/st-joe-nurses-file-complaints-with-national-labor-board/apxnczd/