UW – SEIU 1199 Negotiations Recap for April 25, 2019
Background
This recap details the second session for the renewal of the collective bargaining agreement between the UW and SEIU 1199. Recaps are published online on the UW Labor Relations website.
SEIU 1199 Initial Proposals
Staffing Plans (Nursing) – SEIU 1199 proposed language stating that the CEO of Harborview Medical Center would be required to approve the staffing plans agreed upon in the Nurse Staffing Committee, and that in the event of a prolonged or ongoing and significant increase or decrease in patient census, any change in staffing plans would need to be brought to the committee.
Staffing Plans (Non-Nursing) – SEIU 1199 proposed that staffing plans for non-nursing job classes would have to be created, reviewed, and agreed upon by the relevant Joint Labor/Management Committee.
Education Support Funds Pool – SEIU 1199 proposed that the amount of education funds unused within the prior fiscal year would be added to the next fiscal year’s budget as a pool of available funds. The proposed language further stated that employees of any job class in the bargaining unit could apply to receive pooled education support funds, which would be awarded by seniority.
Education Support Funds for Healthcare Specialists/Leads – SEIU 1199 proposed to increase the annual education support funds for Healthcare Specialists/Leads from $1,800 to $3,000, pro-rated for FTE.
Charge Nurse Patient Assignment – SEIU 1199 proposed that charge nurses would not have a patient assignment and would be considered outside of the matrix of the unit. For units with two charge nurses, the main charge nurse would not have a patient assignment and the back-up charge nurse would have a maximum patient assignment of one.
Research/Hall Health Bargaining Unit Parity – SEIU 1199 proposed that any agreements reached with HMC that exceed those already ratified within the 2019-2021 Research/Hall Health CBA would be applied to the Research/Hall Health CBA. This would include but not be limited to agreements regarding wages, premiums, differentials, vacation accruals, and staffing.
Shift Rotation – SEIU 1199 proposed that shift rotations would not be utilized without mutual consent, except for emergency situations where it may be necessary to provide safe patient care. The Union proposed to eliminate rotating shifts within six months of contract ratification.
U-PASS – SEIU 1199 proposed that effective July 1, 2019, bargaining unit employees would not be charged a fee for a U-PASS.
Vacation – SEIU 1199 proposed language to address three aims: first, that the vacation accrual rate for bargaining unit members match current rates of SEIU 925 and WFSE members; second, that management approval of vacation requests take place within four weeks of the request’s submission; and third, that members be allowed to cash out vacation hours if they accrue above the 240 hour cap.
Next Steps
The next UW-SEIU 1199 bargaining session is scheduled for April 30 at Harborview Medical Center.