Negotiations Recap for June 6, 2013
This recap details the fifth session for the renewal of the collective bargaining agreement between the UWMC and WSNA.
WSNA Counter-Proposals
- Union Reports
- WSNA presented a counter to UWMC’s proposed language updates surrounding administrative processes such as dues deduction and employee rosters.
- The parties discussed what identifying employee information can and cannot be acquired and provided to the union.
- On-call Staffing
- WSNA declined UWMC’s proposal to establish a system of on-call scheduling in the Labor and Delivery Unit and in the Emergency Department.
UWMC Counter-Proposals
- Rest Between Shifts
- UWMC maintained its proposal to standardize the required off-duty time between shifts at 10 and one-half hours for nurses working eight-, 10-, and 12-hour shifts.
- UWMC withdrew its proposal to pay nurses at a premium rate only for the amount of time worked during their scheduled time-off period, and instead proposed that any nurse receiving less than the required time off between shifts receive four hours of premium pay during their next shift.
- Missed Rest Breaks
- UWMC maintained its proposal that after KRONOS’ August implementation date, any missed rest breaks that are not documented in KRONOS would be considered as taken.
- Charge Nurse Pay
- UWMC proposed that nurses be paid the Charge Nurse premium when they are formally assigned Charge Nurse responsibility for a period of two or more hours, instead of the current four-hour threshold.
- General Wage Increases
- UWMC proposed an across-the-board wage increase of 2 percent on July 1, 2013, and 1 percent on July 1, 2014. These wage increases would remain contingent upon the Washington State Legislature approving and appropriating the funds requested by the UW through the biennial budget process.
Further Dialogue
Separations
UWMC presented data on the number of nurses leaving UWMC between July 2011 and May 2013. A full 45 percent of the 217 separations that occurred during this time period consisted of nurses that had worked at UWMC for two years or less. For nurses who worked at UWMC for 20 or more years, all separations were retirements. UWMC pointed out that of the 217 nurses who departed during this time, 33 have since returned to work at UWMC.
Next Steps
The next UWMC-WSNA bargaining session is scheduled for June 13.