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Spring 2004

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"The freedom to choose a union is a democratic right in a free society," said Lori Gay, RN, chair of the organizing committee at SLRMC. "As long as this election remains unresolved, RNs at Salt Lake Regional have no voice on the job and working conditions could get worse." SLRMC nurses and community activists held an informational picket in front of the hospital March 5, while hospital administrators bought pizza for employees remaining inside.

Unfortunately, Salt Lake nurses are not alone in encountering anti-union roadblocks. In Somerville, NJ, nurses attempting to organize with NYSNA were met with unprecedented and illegal scare tactics that resulted in an election loss. At press time, the NLRB has ruled that the election at Somerset shall be re-run. The union filed objections against malicious management activities, including threatening Filipino nurses with deportation if they voted for NYSNA and disconnecting the phones of nurses living in hospital dorms; tampering with RN address lists, which the hospital is required by law to furnish; and, firing pro-union RNs.

Such anti-union activities have gotten the attention of many in Congress. The Employee Free Choice Act, introduced in December 2003 by Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-MA) and Rep. George Miller (D-CA), will level the playing field between workers and management by imposing civil penalties of up to $20,000 for each illegal activity by management and triples the back pay due any employee improperly dismissed because of organizing activities. The bill also makes the card check recognition system the law of the land, and removes many impediments to first contract negotiations. At press time, the bill has 178 House and 38 Senate co-sponsors. (For more on the EFCA, go to www.AFLCIO.org)

Nurses remain committed to the fight for the right to a union, too: "We re in this for our patients," adds Gay. "We ve got to act now to improve working conditions so that Salt Lake Regional will be a place nurses want to work and where patients get the care they need."

Take Action Now! Contact Your Elected Representatives to Protect RNs Overtime

Use this flier on the RN overtime pay take-away to spread the word among your fellow RNs, and contact your senators and representative to let them know that RNs demand overtime pay protection.

While overtime pay for other first responders, from firefighters to LPNs, was specifically protected in new overtime pay rules introduced April 23 by the Bush administration s Department of Labor, registered nurses were not so fortunate. UAN leaders noted that the rules raise more questions than answers about how overtime rules will be applied to RNs and introduce new loopholes for employers looking to avoid paying RNs overtime pay.

"Registered nurses should not have to read between the lines to infer that their overtime pay is protected, but should have the same guaranteed overtime protections as other important, protected groups of workers," said UAN President Cheryl Johnson, RN. The new rules make it easier for employers to re-classify RNs as salariedónot hourlyóemployees by loosening so called ìdockingî provisions that have previously protected RNs.

The new rules make it easier for employers to re-classify RNs as salariedónot hourlyóemployees by loosening socalled "docking" provisions that have previously protected RNs.

The rules specify a new type of employee called a ìteam leaderî who is exempt from overtime pay even if he or she "does not have direct supervisory responsibility"óopening the door for employers to try to classify RNs as team leaders. Some RNs are already designated as team leaders by their hospital management.

RNs who earn more than $100,000 in annual salary are also at risk for losing their overtime pay. That may not seem like a concern now, when average annual pay for RNs is $49,840, but average RN wages would only have to grow 5 percent each year for an RN to hit the ceiling and lose her overtime pay in 15 years.

Winners

Congratulations to the nurses of the Shelby County Medical Center in Harlan, IA, who chose INA/UAN as their union February 26. A majority of RNs voted in favor of the union. Key issues included staffi ng and a voice in decision-making.

Michigan nurses (MNA) at the Ottawa County Health Department ratified a new three-year contract that includes a minimum 7.5 percent raise over the contract and retroactive pay for 2003, and improvements to sick leave and bereavement benefits.

Support Angelica Workers

Workers at Angelica Textile, a major supplier of hospital linens and owner of nurse uniform retailer Life Uniform, are stepping up efforts to organize with UNITE.

Minnesota: Ergonomics Fight is On

Members of the Minnesota Nurses Association and other allied unions are fi ghting for a proposed state ergonomics standard (SF260). The bill passed the state Senate s Jobs, Housing and Development Committee in March and is under consideration before the full Senate. If passed, it would make Minnesota the third state to have implemented an ergonomics standard: California has a limited standard, and Washington had an ergonomics standard before it was repealed by the pro-business lobby last fall.

Staffing Watch

California's landmark ratio law, in effect since January 1, is generating guardedly optimistic reviews. Union leaders observed in an anecdotal survey that about 58 percent of hospitals reported compliance with the law (San Francisco Business Journal, March 2, 2004).

Meanwhile, many hospitals are predictably dragging their feet, complaining that the staffing measure leaves them unable to coordinate coverage for nurses going to the bathroom.

The state hospital lobbying group is suing the state Dept. of Health Services over the law.

Crafting UAN's Constitution - 'A Living Document by Staff Nurses'

UAN delegates provided critical feedback on the content and direction of the drafted UAN constitution to members of the Organizational Structure Committee and the UAN Executive Council March 23 in Chicago.

"Our goal is to craft a living document written by staff nurses that will be the foundation for UAN s growth, directed by and totally committed to the interests of staff nurses," said UAN President Cheryl Johnson, RN. "This draft constitution places the ultimate decision-making authority in the hands of the National Labor Assemblyódelegates elected by UAN staff nurses, who comprise the union s largest governing body and with representatives from every state."

The year-long process of drafting the constitution has included consultation with elected leaders and staff in every UAN state. Additional feedback and informational meetings between are being held throughout the spring to ensure that all ideas are considered by the time NLA delegates meet for fi nal action on the constitution in June.

Did You Know

Skilled nursing facilities have the highest injury rates of any of the 13,000 worksites surveyed by OSHA in 2003. These facilities received more OSHA notices, at 2,602, than any other standard industrial code classification.

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Women around the world earn less than men in every occupation, according to a new survey by the International Labor Organization. That is true even in traditionally "female" jobs such as nursing and teaching, in which women earn 90 percent or less than their male counterparts. Male nurses in the U.S. earn on average 12 percent more than women in nursing. To read the full survey, go to www.ilo.org.

Health & Safety

UAN is working with other AFL-CIO unions representing direct care providers and fi rst responders and the ANA for a standard covering airborne infectious diseases and biological agents. The standard could go a long way toward protecting nurses from illnesses like SARS and avian flu. OSHA tabled its decade-long work on a TB standard in 2003.

Editorial

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© 2004 United American Nurses,
AFL-CIO. All rights reserved.