We Think Not!

When our RN Bargaining Team from Northridge Hospital Medical Center, St. John’s Regional Medical Center and St. John’s Pleasant Valley Hospital began bargaining last month, management presented our team with 82 pages of our current contract rife with deletions of rights and protections we have fought to win for years.

If Dignity’s claims that they need these take-aways because of tough economic times are true, then why does Dignity want so many changes that affect our job security and Union rights? Job security issues, whether a new owner would have to agree to hire 80 percent of current employees if the hospital is sold, and a fair holiday sign-up process have nothing to do with economics. So why does Dignity want to get rid of such language?

We think it’s because Dignity wants to make us powerless and, basically, get rid of our Union without actually having to get rid of it.

Here are some additional contract take-aways that Dignity management has proposed:

• Per diem RNs who work full-time hours would no longer be given the opportunity to convert to benefitted full-time employees.
• A process that allows RNs who have been laid off to be recalled for up to two years would be replaced with a rehire process that makes no guarantees.
• Bilingual pay at St. John’s would be eliminated.
• ESB at Northridge and SSP at St. John’s would be eliminated.
• Deletes much of the language that allows members to take conflicts to arbitration.
• Northridge holiday sign-up would be eliminated.
• Cash out process for PTO in excess of 40 hours would be deleted.
• Patient Care Committees at all three facilities would no longer have the right to take issues to arbitration.
• Union stewards would only be allowed five days per calendar year to attend Union activities. Reducing the time that our Union stewards need to attend important trainings and meetings affects our union strength.
• The hospital’s proposal would take away the requirement that the employer require a purchaser to commit to hiring 80 percent of current employees who apply to work at the facility. How in the world would that affect Dignity’s current bottom line?

Our Bargaining Team is recruiting Contract Action Team — or CAT — members. CAT members help distribute information about contract negotiations and bring any questions and/or concerns to the attention of a Bargaining Team member. CATs also help rally members in your department to action. For example, if we have an informational picket or strike, you would help bring your co-workers out on the line.

For more information, contact a Bargaining Team member:

St. John’s Susie Boatright, 4N Adriane Carrier, 2N Don Hadland, Pleas.Valley ER Nina Wells, Education Cynthia Wentzel, Pleas. Valley ACU

Northridge Gayle Batiste, OR Jaime Deloera, 4G Judith Lamasan, Case Mgmt Linda Pickford, NICU Jennifer Solovay, ICU

Click here to view and/or print complete flyer.