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Fall 2003 Download PDF of Newsletter Foundation for The Future: UAN Labor Leader Institute Building strong grassroots activists has been one of the goals of UAN since its founding in 1999. The nearly 100 participants at the third annual UAN Labor Leader Institute, held in October in Chicago, spent five days fine-tuning their skills in grievance handling, negotiations, working with the media and strategies to increase membership. ìWe want to support our UAN leaders at the local level and give them the tools they need to be effective unionists wherever they are,î said UAN President Cheryl L. Johnson. ìThese are the leaders for UAN's future.î RNs learned valuable skills they would take back to their local units: ìSince we are in pre-negotiations at this time, our [next] negotiations will be better understoodî after the negotiations training, said Michiganís Janet Bestervelt, RN. ìI can bring so much wonderful information back to our 600 RNs.î ìUnion leadership development is what this institute is about. UAN nurses run their union and this program provides the skills and expertise they can use to advance ó not only themselves but the UAN and state programs as well,î added UAN National Executive Director Susan Bianchi-Sand. ìThis was a week of hard work for participants, but we believe the training will yield substantial benefits to staff nurses and the UAN.î Institute participants learned about Chicagoís long and storied labor history. Nurses took a tour of George Pullmanís company town, site of an 1894 strike by Pullman rail workers that became a milestone in workersí quest for labor rights. Others toured Haymarket Square, site of a deadly 1886 riot, and learned about the subsequent trials and execution of workers fighting for the eight-hour workday many Americans now enjoy. UAN tentatively plans to hold next year's LLI in Seattle, Washington. Converso Highlights VA Nursing Shortage for Congress UAN Vice President Ann Converso, RN, testified before the House Veterans Affairs Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Oct. 2 on the nurse staffing shortage and its impact on Veterans Administration health care. Converso specifically recommended that, to solve the shortage, VA facilities must do a better job of soliciting and acting on staff nursesí input.ìVA facilities where RNs have a union are excellent models for involving nurses ó the people providing round-the-clock care for our veterans ó in the decision-making loop,î she said.Read Converso's full testimony December: Make Your Voice Heard Workers and activists around the world will come together in December to commemorate International Human Rights Day and send the message that workers' rights are human rights. Dec. 10 is the anniversary of the 1948 ratification of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which guarantees the right of all people to form unions and bargain collectively.A new bill introduced by Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-MA) and Rep. George Miller (D-CA) makes it easier for workers to form unions free of the obstacles employers often impose. At press time, the bill has 81 Senate and 22 House co-sponsors. Contact your senator (202) 224-3121, or representative (202) 225-3121, to urge them to support the "Employee Free Choice Act." Some 42 million U.S. workers say they would form a union tomorrow if given the chance, according to a February 2003 survey by pollsters at Hart Research. Learn how your local unit can support organizing workers in your area: Union Plus Savings As a benefit of union membership, RNs represented for collective bargaining by UAN or a UAN CMA can save on Union Plus discounts, from Goodyear union-made tires at your local Goodyear garage to Cingular wireless service, to savings on movie tickets. To learn more about Union Plus everyday savings, visit: www.unionplus.org/discount Overtime Fight Continues on Capitol Hill Despite more than 40,000 emails to President Bush and bipartisan Congressional support for an amendment to block overtime pay cuts, on Nov. 22 the administration strong-armed Congressional leaders into removing the Harkin amendment from the HHS-Department of Labor appropriations bill. Bush had threatened to veto any legislation that included the overtime pay protection measure. Without the amendment protecting workersí overtime rights, the administration could put new rules gutting workersí overtime pay rights into effect as early as December. Republican efforts to remove the amendment were successful when Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA) dropped his demand to include the protection. Big Business Defeats Washington Ergo Rule Despite strong efforts by WSNA nurses and state labor activists, corporate interests spent thousands of dollars to push through a state ballot initiative striking down the stateís strong ergonomics law, passed in 2000. The law, supported by the Washington State Labor Council and other pro-worker and pro-RN activists, protected workers in the state from approximately 50,000 ergonomics injuries each year with cost more than $411 million each year, according to the Working Families for Safer Jobs coalition. UAN and ANA provided financial support for WSNAís efforts to fight the initiative. The anti-worker initiative was supported by a massive negative campaign by businesses that played on unrelated fears of job loss in the state. State ergonomics laws have taken on critical importance since the Bush administration, as one of its first acts in office, repealed the federal ergonomics standards enacted by President Clinton. Victories Congratulations to NYSNA RNs in Utica, NY, who won increases in retiree health benefits in their new 3-year contract... to MNA nurses in Manastique, MI, whose new 3-year contract provides raises of 16 percent over the agreement... and MNA RNs in Lenawee, MI, had their contract rights upheld when a U.S. District judge upheld an arbitrator's ruling that the employer cannot change health care contributions without new negotiations. Medicare Alert At press time, President Bush has pledged to sign a controversial Medicare overhaul bill that passed the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate. Labor groups and ANAhave raised concerns that the bill will weaken Medicare. For the latest, go to: www.retiredamericans.org VA News Negotiations between the UAN National VA Council representatives and the VA have now entered their final phase. Mediated negotiations concluded in October, and an impasse panel will convene early next year to resolve three outstanding issues: national labor-management relations meetings; union use of VA facilities and services; and, official time for national and local representatives. Shop Union This holiday season, support union jobs by purchasing sweathop free products. For clothing, visit the Union Mall at: www.nosweatshop.com For union books, films, mugs and more: www.AFLCIO.ORG/shop Dates Dec. 8-10 Program Directors meeting (Chicago)
Your Turn on The Web Check out The newest Your Turn question, "Have you experienced a back or other musculoskeletal injury while on the job as an RN?" Also, read nurses' responses to the Bush administration's efforts to change overtime pay in the Your Turn archive. Editorial UAN Activist
© 2003 United American Nurses, |
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