Category: Washington State Nurses Association – Montlake

Background

This recap details the third virtual session for the renewal of the collective bargaining agreement between the UW and Washington State Nurses Association. Recaps are published online on the UW Labor Relations website.

WSNA Initial Proposals

U-PASS – The Union proposed nurses would have the option to receive a payout of the amount the Employer is charged for the U-PASS, instead of receiving the U-PASS.

Premiums – The Union proposed to renew an MOU agreed to during the 2019 – 2021 contract cycle, which states that if a nurse is required to move from an assigned shift for which they are earning a premium, the nurse would be paid the premium for the assigned shift, regardless of whether or not they are temporarily moved to another assignment. The MOU also states that there would be no stacking premiums, and that if the Employer reassigns a nurse to a role that also carries a premium, the nurse would receive the higher of the two premium.

Higher Education – The Union proposed a new MOU that states that nurses seeking higher education would be guaranteed the option to lower their FTE.

UW Initial Proposals

Float Between Campuses – The Employer proposed a new MOU would give management the ability to float nurses between UWMC-Montlake and UWMC-NW. Under this proposal, if a nurse if floated to an entity other than the nurse’s home entity, the nurse would receive a four dollar premium for all hours worked outside the nurse’s home entity. This premium would not stack with other float premiums and would not apply to nurses already receiving a premium for being in the float team. Nurses would be reimbursed for mileage and parking at the second site per university policy.

Shift Premium – The Employer proposed to increase the shift differential from $4.25 to $4.50 for nurses assigned to work the third shift.

Temporary Assignment to a Higher Position – The Employer proposed that a nurse temporarily assigned to perform the principal duties of a higher-level nursing position for a period of five or more working days would be paid a temporary salary increase (TSI) of at least five percent over the present salary but not to exceed the maximum of the range for the higher classification, replacing language stating the nurse would receive a salary that represents a two-step increase beyond the nurse’s current step.

Standby – The Employer proposed to add Neonatal ICU, Perinatal Daily, and the Emergency Department to departments that require classified nurses to take call.

Scheduling – The Employer proposed to strike language stating that mutual agreement between nurse and manager is necessary to change schedules for nurses regularly working eight-hour shifts to work ten- or twelve-hour shifts, and to change schedules for nurses regularly working ten- or twelve-hours shifts to work eight-hour shifts. Additionally, the Employer proposed to strike language stating that nurses with greater than ten years seniority who are assigned to a unit which changes its length of shift by greater than two hours are entitled to retain their shift length on the same unit, and to strike similar language stating that nurses with greater than twenty years seniority who are assigned to a unit which changes it length of shift by greater than two hours are entitled to retain their shift, shift length and unit.

Management Time – The Employer proposed that time worked for management time before or after a scheduled shift would be paid at the regular rate of pay, rather than counting toward overtime, double-time, or rest between shift premiums. Under this proposal, time worked for management time would be determined by the employee, and requests for nurses to work their management time before or after their scheduled shifts would not be initiated by the Employer.

Compensatory Time Off – The Employer proposed to strike language stating that a nurse may request payment for accrued compensatory time at any time.

Weekends – The Employer proposed language stating that for nurses who work alternative shifts and twelve-hour shift, the shift would count as a weekend shift if the majority of the shift falls between 11pm Friday and 11pm Sunday. Additionally, the Employer proposed the Employer would make a good faith effort to schedule all regular full and part-time nurses for two weekends out of four weekends, rather than every other weekend off or two weekend off out of four successive weekends. Under this proposal, nurses would be able to elect work more than two out of four weekends, and the employer would be able to schedule a nurse to less than four weekend shifts dependent on schedule needs. The Employer also proposed that nurses who agree to work an unscheduled weekend would be paid at double time, defining “unscheduled weekends” as a shift that is in addition to the nurse’s posted scheduled shifts after the schedule is posted and when the nurse is performing direct nursing care.

Rest Between Shifts – The Employer proposed that any nurse who does not receive ten and a half hours’ rest between regularly scheduled shifts would qualify to receive the rest between shift premium. Current language states that nurses who work twelve-hour shifts already receive the premium as proposed, but that nurses who work eight- or ten-hour shifts would receive the rest between shift premium if they do not receive twelve hours rest between regularly scheduled shifts.

Voluntary Low Census – The Employer proposed guidelines surrounding voluntary low census, stating that employees placed on standby for all or part of a shift and called to work would be compensated in accordance with extant language surrounding standby shift. Every effort would be made to notify the RN for the need for low census as early as possible prior to the start of the shift.

Salary Overpayment Recovery – The Employer proposed new language detailing the process for salary overpayment recovery in accordance with relevant state law.

Job Postings – The Employer proposed that that each ICU unit (5E, 5SE, 5SA, and 6SA) would be allowed to offer day shift positions to two outside experienced ICU nursing candidates with at least three years of experience per calendar year, as an exception to the language requiring that job openings be posted in the department for a period of seven days before being posted house-wide and internally.

Release Time – The Employer proposed a new article outlining release time for nurses who work day-shift and night-shift. Under this proposal, if nurses are scheduled on the dayshift of the negotiations, they can request release for all or part of their shift, and if nurses are scheduled on the night shift, the nurse would be able to request release from the shift immediately before or immediately after negotiations. In either case, if hours spent bargaining are less than the scheduled hours, nurses may request to include use benefit time, trade hours to meet FTE, or return to the unit after negotiations to fulfill the scheduled hours with management approval. Additionally, the Employer proposed that with mutual agreement, nurses can be paid straight time for hours in bargaining above their designated FTE. The article also outlines when release would be requested, when bargaining would begin. The Employer also proposed that for demand to bargains during the administration of the collective bargaining agreement, no more than four employees will be paid per bargaining session.

The Employer proposed housekeeping edits only on the following articles:

• Article 8 – Educational and Professional Development

On the following provisions, the Employer proposed to maintain current contract language:

• Article 17 – Employee Facilities

Next Steps

The next UW and WSNA bargaining session is scheduled for May 5 and will be held virtually.

Background

This recap details the second virtual session for the renewal of the collective bargaining agreement between the UW and Washington State Nurses Association. Recaps are published online on the UW Labor Relations website.

WSNA Economic Presentation

WSNA delivered an economic presentation comparing UWMC to other hospitals, as well as how wages affect nurses. Cost of living, the rental market, and student loans were cited as member concerns in relation to pay and where to work. WSNA also discussed staffing and turnover.

The financial presentation is available online.

WSNA Economic Proposal

Wages – The union proposed wages increases for 2021 based upon steps in the current wage scale. Under this proposal, steps 1 to 10 would receive a 6% increase, steps 11 to 21 would receive 5%, and steps 22 to 30 would receive 7%. The union also proposed to increase wages across the board 4% in 2022.

Shift Premium – The union proposed to increase the shift premium for second shift from $2.50 to $2.75 and increase the shift premium for third shift from $4.25 to $5.00.

Charge Premium – The union proposed to split the charge premium into two different rates, one rate for day and one for night. Under this proposal, the charge premium for 7am to 7pm would increase from $2.50 to $2.75, and the charge premium for 7pm to 7am would be $4.00.

Standby Premium – The union proposed to change the hours spent on standby required to receive the higher rate of standby pay from fifty hours to thirty. Under this proposal, nurses who worked thirty hours of standby would receive the lower rate, which the union proposed to increase from $4 to $4.25. Nurses who worked over thirty hours of standby would receive the higher rate of $6.25.

Float Premium – The union proposed to increase the float premium from $1.50 to $3 for nurses assigned to work outside the unit for which they were hired. Additionally, the union proposed to increase the float premium from $4 to $5 dollars for nurses employed solely in the Float Pool.

Weekend Premium – The union proposed to increase the weekend premium from $4 to $4.25.

Dialysis Nurse Premium – The union proposed a new premium of $4 for nurses assigned to dialyze patients.

Operating Room Specialty Service Premium – The union proposed a new premium of $2.50 per hour worked, including training hours, for nurses who are a part of the Neuro, Cardiac, or Transplant teams.

Parking – The union proposed that the UW would not be able to apply changes in transportation policy without obligation to bargain with the union.

WSNA Initial Proposals (Non-Economic)

Staffing Plan – The union proposed that the staffing plan would be reviewed at least semi-annually, and that the employer would post, in a public area on each patient care unit, the nurse staffing plan and the nurse staffing schedule for that shift on that unit, as well as the relevant clinical staffing for that shift.

Staffing Concerns – The union proposed that nurses believing there is an immediate workload/staffing problem should file an Assignment Despite Objection (ADO) if the problem is not remedied after bringing the problem to the attention of the Nurse Manager, instead of bringing the problem to the Joint Conference Committee. The union also proposed language stating that nurses would not be retaliated against for filing an ADO. Additionally, the union proposed that a nurse would be able to report to the staffing committee any variations where the nursing personnel assignment in a patient care unit is not in accordance with the adopted staffing plan. The nurse would also be able to make a complaint to the staffing committee based on the variations, or based on adjustments in staffing levels made according to the requirements of the staffing plan.

Shared Governance – The union proposed a new article surrounding the extant shared governance councils at UW. The language in the article would dictate the member composition of the councils, outline the purpose of the councils, and mandate how often the councils should meet. Under this proposal, members and chairs of the Unit Practice Council would be only staff nurses who provide direct care; all other councils would also include staff nurses who provide direct care. The proposal stated that all nurses would be scheduled appropriately so they could attend the council meetings in which they are members, and that attendance at meetings would be considered work time.

UW Medicine Financial Presentation

Jacqueline Cabe, Chief Financial Officer for UW Medicine, delivered a presentation reviewing UW Medicine’s financial situation, summarizing COVID-19’s impact on the healthcare system, the effects of COVID relief funds, the current state of the budget and forecasts for the future.

The financial presentation is available online.

UW Initial Proposals

Probationary Period – The Employer proposed that by mutual agreement, the Employer and an employee would be able to extend the probationary period up to an additional three months. Under this proposal, probationary period would never exceed nine months.

Trial Service – The Employer proposed that an employee serving a trial service period could voluntarily revert to their former permanent position within six weeks of the appointment, provided that the position has not been filled or an offer has not been made to an applicant, rather than the two months preemptive rights to revert to their former position in current contract language. Under this proposal, after six weeks, employees could revert to their former position with Employer approval. In the event the former position had been filled with a permanent employee, the employee would be placed on the rehire list.

Layoff – The Employer proposed that leave without pay would not affect seniority for layoff, regardless of the length of the leave. The Employer further proposed that positions offered to nurses as layoff options would be positions with any FTE, rather than positions that are only within 0.2 FTE of the nurse’s current FTE. Additionally, the Employer proposed that all nurses on lay off would be paid accrued time off in one payment, striking language stating that nurse on layoff could request in writing that the payment for accrued time of be divided into two payments.

Department Seniority – The Employer proposed language defining department seniority (as differentiated from layoff seniority). The language states department seniority is defined as continuous length of service in calendar days within the employee’s department, and that department seniority would be used for internal department processes, such as schedule bids. Language further states that department seniority would be used for interdepartmental transfers, and ties in department seniority would be determined by lot. Additionally, the Employer proposed language clarifying that the 50% seniority granted to nurses who transfer to another department includes nurses who transfer into any RN classification in either Montlake or Northwest campus.

Reallocation – The Employer proposed that upon reclassification, the nurse’s progression start would change, as is the case elsewhere in the UW. The new date would be the first of the current month for effective dates falling between the first and fifteenth of the month and the first of the following month for effective dates falling between the sixteenth and the end of the month.

Workers’ Compensation – The Employer proposed that employees who suffer a work-related injury or illness that is compensable under the state worker’s compensation law could select a combination of time off payment and time loss compensation without deduction for time loss insurance payments. The Employer also proposed to strike language stating that employees could select time off payment exclusively in these cases, as workers’ compensation is an entitlement that cannot be waived.

Complete Agreement – The Employer proposed that they would not waive their right to bargain mandatory subjects of bargaining within the life of the contract. The Employer further proposed that if either party wishes to make a change in mandatory subjects of bargaining, proper notice and opportunity to bargain would be provided.

Class Specifications – The Employer proposed to strike class specifications from the contract, as class specifications are online on the UW Compensation website.

On the following articles, the Employer proposed to maintain current contract language:

• Article 1 – Purpose
• Article 16 – Conference Committee
• Article 18 – Corrective Action (Progressive Discipline) Dismissal and Resignation
• Article 23 – Management Rights and Responsibilities
• Article 24 – Performance of Duty
• Article 27 – Savings Clause

The Employer proposed housekeeping edits only on the following provisions:

• Article 30 – Represented Per Diem Nurses
• Appendix III – Clinical Clusters Pertaining To Layoff
• Appendix IV – Innovative Work Schedule Agreement Form
• Side Letter – UPASS

Next Steps

The next UW and WSNA bargaining session is scheduled for April 21 and will be held virtually.

Background

On June 18, UW reached a tentative agreement with WSNA on a successor CBA for UWMC – Montlake for the 2021-23 biennium. Highlights of the tentative agreement are below, and copies of each provision will soon be posted on the contract website.

Tentative Agreement Highlights

• Wages
  • Bargaining unit members will receive an across-the-board increase of 1% on July 1, 2021 and 2% on July 1, 2022.
  • The RN2 wage scale will be increased 5% for recruitment and retention purposes. The RN 3 scale will be amended to maintain the RN3 scale at 8% above the RN 2 scale at each step of the wage scale.
• Night Shift Premium
  • The night shift premium will increase from $4.25 to $4.50.
• Standby
  • The standby premium will increase from $4.00 to $4.25 for employees working 30 or fewer hours of standby.
  • The threshold at which employees receive the higher premium of $6.25 will decrease from 50 to 30 hours.
  • The Employer may institute a voluntary standby program in the Perinatal Daily and Neonatal ICU starting in August 2021.
  • The parties agreed to mandatory standby in the Emergency Department.
• Holiday Addition
  • Juneteenth (June 19) was added as an additional paid holiday.
• Non-Discrimination Update
  • New language in the non-discrimination article aligns with new state law clarifying that discrimination based on race extends to traits associated with race (e.g. protective hairstyles).
• Weekend Shift Definition
  • Parties agreed that the Employer will make a good faith effort to schedule two weekends out of four weekends in a schedule, not to exceed four weekend shifts. Unscheduled weekend is defined as a shift that is in addition to the nurses posted scheduled shifts after the schedule is posted and when the nurse is performing direct nursing care. Nurses that agree to work unscheduled weekend shifts shall be paid at double time the regular rate of pay.
• Rest Between Shift Update
  • Nurses will qualify to receive the rest between shift premium if they do not receive 11 hours rest between regularly scheduled shifts.
• Family Care Emergency
  • The child care provision was updated to include family care, including a definition for elder care emergencies in accordance with state law.
• Work Related Injury Leave
  • Employees who suffer a work-related injury or illness that is compensable under the state worker’s compensation law may select time loss compensation exclusively or a combination of leave payment and time loss compensation, without any restriction (e.g. no longer deducting time loss insurance payments).
• Layoff Seniority Definition
  • Paid or unpaid leave will no longer impact layoff seniority therefore employees who have taken leave (e.g. FMLA) will not have their layoff seniority adversely impacted for utilizing protected leave.
• Scheduling
  • Language was adjusted to state that nurses with twenty years seniority are entitled to retain their shift length, but not unit, if they are assigned to a unit that changes their length of shift by greater than two hours. Nurses with ten years seniority are not entitled to shift length or unit.
• Pre-scheduled Voluntary Overtime
  • New language was added for Pre-scheduled Voluntary Overtime, which the employer may offer after the schedule is posted. These shifts will be compensated at the rate of time and one-half the regular rate of pay plus an additional two hours of extra pay for the shift. The nurse shall receive the premium pay for a minimum work period of three hours. This pay cannot be bundled with call back.
• Multi-Campus Floating Discussion
  • If SEIU 1199 and WSNA at UWMC-NW agree to participate, the parties will meet and discuss floating among the three hospitals. The purposes of the discussion are to increase development opportunities, staff satisfaction, recruitment and retention opportunities, and to improve patient care.
• Voluntary Float Between Campuses
  • When there is low patient volume in a specific unit or department, management may float nurses who volunteer to do so between UWMC-Montlake and UWMC-NW for a float premium of $4.00. This premium will apply to nurses already receiving a premium for being in the float team and cannot be stacked with any other float premiums. Nurses will be reimbursed for mileage and parking at the second site per university policy.

Next Steps

Members of WSNA will vote on the tentative agreement. The voting outcome, along with a further summary of any agreement reached, will be posted once available.

 

Background

This recap details the eighth virtual session for the renewal of the collective bargaining agreement between the UW and Washington State Nurses Association. Recaps are published online on the UW Labor Relations website.

Tentative Agreements

The parties tentatively agreed to the following:

Article 13 – Family Medical Leave Act and Parental Leave

• Clean-up language clarifying conditions and benefits currently available to employees regarding parental leave, leave due to family care emergencies, PFML, and FMLA.

Article 14 – Other Leaves

• Expanded child care emergencies to family care emergencies by adding coverage for elder care emergencies.
• Sick time off for child care emergencies is not limited to six days

Article 19 – Grievance Procedure

• The parties tentatively agreed to current contract language

New Article – PFML Supplemental Benefits

• Moved this MOU into the body of the contract

MOU: Salary Overpayment Recovery

• New MOU outlines the process followed when the Employer has determined that an employee has been overpaid wages.

UW Economic Presentation

Milliman Classified Staff Salary Study – On June 8, UW HR Compensation presented an analysis of how the compensation for the RN2 benchmark job classification compares to market. The analysis is based on salary data (actual data) from the published 2021 NW Healthcare Milliman survey and can be found here.

UW Package Proposal

On June 8, the Employer presented a package proposal that included an initial economic proposal of a 1% across-the-board wage increase on July 1, 2021 and another 1% on July 1, 2022, as well as a 3% increase to the RN2 wage scale for recruitment and retention purposes. The proposal also included that the RN 3 scale would be amended to maintain the RN3 scale at 8% above the RN 2 scale at each step of the wage scale. The package contained previous proposals concerning floating, scheduling flexibility, standby, rest between shifts.

On June 10, the Union and Employer exchanged several counter-packages in response to the above provisions. Below, please find the most recent package from the Employer. A package means that all provisions would need to be accepted in their entirety. If the package is not accepted in its entirety, the party proposing the package may withdraw the proposals.

Wages – The Employer proposed to increase wages across-the-board by 1% on July 1, 2021 and another 2% on July 1, 2022.

Recruitment and Retention Increase – The Employer proposed to increase the wage scale for RN2s by 5% for recruitment and retention purposes. The Employer also proposed that the RN 3 scale would be amended to maintain the RN3 scale at 8% above the RN 2 scale at each step of the wage scale.

Standby Premium – The Employer accepted the Union’s proposal to increase the standby premium from $4.00 to $4.25 for employees working 30 or fewer hours of standby. The Employer also accepted Union’ s proposal to reduce from over 50 hours to over 30 hours the threshold at which employees receive the higher premium of $6.25.

Mandatory Standby Units – The Employer maintained its proposal to add Neonatal ICU, Perinatal Daily, and the Emergency Department to departments that require classified nurses to take call.

Development of a Floating Tool – The Employer maintained its initial proposal regarding facilitated mediation for the development of a floating tool. Under this proposal, the parties would agree to request facilitated mediation from the state of Washington’s Public Employee Relations Commission (PERC) within 90 days of ratification to develop a tiered floating tool. This tool would create an equitable and effective method of responding to changes in staffing needs across all three hospitals: UW Medical Center – Montlake, UW Medical Center – Northwest, and Harborview Medical Center. The parties would commit to meeting at least monthly with the facilitator/mediator, for up to 12 months, to fully discuss and work together to develop a process. Up to four nurses at UWMC-ML would be provided paid time to attend each session. The goals would be to address census fluctuations while supporting a healthy work environment for staff, to increase recruitment and retention through growth opportunities, and to ensure quality patient care.

Float Between Campuses – The Employer rejected the Union’s proposal that float between campuses would be voluntary; however, the Employer added language to its proposal in response to Union members concerns about orientation to areas where a nurse is floated. The language explains how a nurse would be oriented, which would include a review of emergency procedures, a tour of the physical environment, and review of patient assignment. The language also states that nurses would not be required to perform new procedures without nursing supervision, and that nurses would seek supervisory guidance for those tasks or procedures for which they have not been trained. The Employer’s counter-proposal also addressed how floats would be assigned, first floating volunteers, then travelers, then staff on a rotating basis.

Pre-Scheduled Voluntary Overtime – The Employer maintained its proposal that if a pre-scheduled voluntary overtime shift is cancelled at least one hour prior to the start of the shift, the premium would not be paid. The parties are in agreement with the remainder of the provision, which states that after the initial scheduled bid is incorporated and posted the Employer could offer pre-scheduled voluntary overtime shifts. The shifts would be compensated at the rate of time and one-half the regular rate of pay plus an additional two hours of extra pay for the shift. The nurse would receive the premium pay for a minimum work period of three hours. This could not be bundled with call back.

Scheduling – The Employer maintained its proposal to strike language stating that mutual agreement between nurse and manager is necessary to change schedules for nurses regularly working eight-hour shifts to work ten- or twelve-hour shifts, and to change schedules for nurses regularly working ten- or twelve-hours shifts to work eight-hour shifts. The Employer also maintained its proposal to strike language stating that nurses with greater than ten years seniority are entitled to retain their shift length if they are assigned to a unit that changes their length of shift by greater than two hours. However, in response to the Union’s proposals, the Employer proposed that the language surrounding nurses with ten years seniority would apply to nurses with twenty years seniority; under this proposal, nurses with twenty years seniority would no longer be entitled to retain their unit, but could retain their shift length if they were assigned to a unit that changes their length of shift by greater than two hours.

Work Schedule – The Employer rejected the Union’s proposal to increase from 16 to 28 the number of days prior to the scheduled period of work that the work and on-call schedules would be posted.

Rest Between Shifts – In response to the Union’s proposal, the Employer proposed that nurses who work any shift length would qualify to receive the Rest Between Shifts premium if they do not receive 11 hours rest between regularly scheduled shifts.

Reallocation – The Employer maintained its proposal that upon reclassification, the nurse’s progression start would change, as is the case elsewhere in the UW. The new date would be the first of the current month for effective dates falling between the first and fifteenth of the month and the first of the following month for effective dates falling between the sixteenth and the end of the month.

Staffing Plan – The Employer accepted the Union’s proposal to add language stating that the Employer would post, in a public area on each patient care unit, the nurse staffing plan. In the interest of staff safety, the Employer rejected the Union’s proposal to post the nurse staffing schedule in a public area.

U-PASS – The Employer rejected the Union’s proposal that nurses who use bicycles to travel to and from work would not be charged any fees to use secure bicycle storage/lock-up stands or other facilities. The Employer rejected the Union’s proposal that nurses would have the option to receive a payout of the amount the Employer is charged for the U-PASS, instead of receiving the U-PASS.

Complete Agreement – The Employer withdrew its proposal to strike language waiving their right to bargain mandatory subjects of bargaining within the life of the contract.

Class Specifications – In exchange for striking the Class Specifications in Appendix I from the contract, the Employer agreed to add a link to the Class Specification on the website, and added language stating that should the University decide to create, eliminate, or modify class specifications, it would notify the Union in advance of implementing the action. The language also states that the UW would meet and bargain any impacts with the Union over its proposed action, as is current practice and dictated by law.

Personnel Files – The Employer maintained its proposal that notes or files in which the employee was the subject of an investigation, allegation, or findings of sexual misconduct could be kept more than three years, but accepted the Union’s language stating that in cases where there were no findings, the investigative file would not be part of the official personnel file. The Employer rejected the Union’s proposal that Human Resources would limit its retention of other notes and files to three years, as the University has a longer retention policy.

Next Steps

The next UW and WSNA bargaining session is scheduled for June 18 and will be held virtually.

Background

This recap details the first virtual session for the renewal of the collective bargaining agreement between the UW and Washington State Nurses Association. Recaps are published online on the UW Labor Relations website.

WSNA Initial Proposals

Full-Time Equivalent – The Union proposed that a registered nurse who is classified staff at .9 FTE be defined as full-time, such that salaries and benefits would not be prorated as they are for part-time nurses.

Staffing Concerns – The Union proposed that the Conference Committee would be notified by Hospital management if/when a unit/department has a nursing staff vacancy rate of ten percent or greater or if the number of travelers exceeds five percent of the nursing staff on the unit. Under this proposal, the Conference Committee would form a sub-committee within 14 days of notice of the vacancy rate. The sub-committee would meet within 14 days of the sub-committee being formed with the goal of adjusting staffing through recruitment, Incentive Shifts, and voluntary temporary increase in FTE.

Clinical Advisor – The Union proposed that when the numbers of new graduate nurses on a specific unit comprise five percent or more of the unit’s staff and those nurses have completed their formal preceptor period, the Nurse Managers and/or Charge Nurse would appoint a Clinical Advisor to provide additional clinical support. Under this proposal, the Clinical Advisor would not be considered as part of the staffing matrix, but would be available on all shifts to assist new nurses.

Security Personnel – The Union proposed that security personnel shall be posted at the rooms of all patients whose violent history demonstrates a potential risk, and that nurses would be free to decline caring for patients who they reasonably believe pose such a risk.

Safety Committee – The Union proposed that up to two RNs would be selected by WSNA to participate in the house-wide safety committee and that such participation would be on paid time.

Workplace Violence – The Union proposed that nurses subject to workplace violence would be provided paid time off with full benefits and benefit accrual until fully recovered from the physical and psychological injuries resulting from the violence, reduced by payments from worker’s compensation and disability benefits.

Bicycles – The union proposed that nurses who use bicycles to travel to and from work would not be charged any fees to use secure bicycle storage/lock-up stands or other facilities. 

Work Schedule – The Union proposed that the Employer would post work and on-call schedules at least 28 days prior to the scheduled period of work. 

Childcare Emergencies – The Union proposed unlimited use of vacation time off, sick time off, and unpaid time off for emergency childcare.

Per Diem Overtime – The Union proposed to add from an existing side letter into the body of the contract language that states that per diem nurses would be paid daily overtime for work in excess of the scheduled shift including work in advance of a scheduled shift.

Preamble – The Union proposed to strike Civil Service from the law reference.

The union proposed housekeeping edits only on the following articles:

• Article 12 – Holiday and Vacation Leave
• Article 15 – Sick Leave
• Article 29 – Duration of Agreement
• MOU Public Records Request
• MOU Stand By

On the following provisions, the Union proposed to maintain current contract language:

• Article 1 – Purpose
• Article 2 – Nondiscrimination
• Article 3 – Affirmative Action
• Article 4 – Recognition/Employer
• Article 5 – Association Representatives, Dues Deduction, Activities
• Article 8 – Educational and Professional Development
• Article 13 – Family Medical Leave and Parental Leave
• Article 16 – Conference Committee
• Article 17 – Employee Facilities
• Article 18 – Corrective Action (Progressive Discipline) Dismissal and Resignation
• Article 19 – Grievance Procedure
• Article 20 – Seniority, Layoff, and Rehire
• Article 21 – Posting, Transfer, Promotions, Reallocation
• Article 22 – Worker’s Compensation Leave
• Article 23 – Management Rights and Responsibilities
• Article 24 – Performance of Duty
• Article 25 – Complete Understanding
• Article 27 – Savings Clause
• Article 28 – Complete Agreement
• MOU Rest Breaks
• MOU Parking Citations for Nurses with Valid UW Parking Permits
• Appendix I Class Specifications RN II And III
• Appendix V Union Roster Reports Post Workday Implementation

UW Initial Proposals

Nondiscrimination – To reflect current law, the Employer added immigration status and citizenship as basis for discrimination against which employees are protected.

Union dues – The Employer proposed a web-based system through which the Union would submit dues authorization, thereby eliminating manual entry.

Employee files – To reflect current law, the Employer added an exception to records that may be removed from an employee file, for those related to sexual misconduct.

Family Medical Leave and Parental Leave – The Employer proposed clean-up language to clarify conditions and benefits currently available to employees regarding parental leave, leave due to family care emergencies, PFML, and FMLA.

Grievance Procedure – The Employer proposed to shorten from 30 to 14 days the timeframe the Association would have to submit a grievance to arbitration following a mediation impasse or a written declination of mediation. The proposal contained language regarding how expenses for arbitration would be handled, stating that each party would bear one-half of the fee of the arbitrator for an Award issued on a timely basis and any other expense jointly incurred incident to the arbitration hearing.

The Employer proposed housekeeping edits only on the following articles:

• Article 3 – Affirmative Action
• Article 4 – Recognition/Employer
• Article 12 – Holiday and Vacation Leave
• Article 15 – Sick Leave
• Article 16 – Conference Committee
• MOU Rest Breaks
• MOU Parking Citations for Nurses with Valid UW Parking Permits

The Employer proposed to strike the following out-of-date MOU:

• MOU Per Diem RN Wages

The next UW and WSNA bargaining session is scheduled for April 7 and will be held virtually.

Background

This recap details the fifth virtual session for the renewal of the collective bargaining agreement between the UW and Washington State Nurses Association. Recaps are published online on the UW Labor Relations website.

Tentative Agreements

The parties tentatively agreed to the following:

Article 3 – Affirmative Action

• Added reference to the corresponding University Executive Order

Article 15 –  Sick Time Off

• Housekeeping edits only, including change the term “leave” to “time off” to reflect UW terminology

Article 17 –  Employer Facilities

• Maintained current contract language

Article 22 – Workers’ Compensation

• Eliminated language such that employees who suffer a work-related injury or illness that is compensable under the state worker’s compensation law may select time loss compensation exclusively or a combination of leave payment and time loss compensation, without any restriction (e.g. no longer deducting time loss insurance payments).

Appendix III –  Clinical Clusters Pertaining to Layoff Article 20

• Housekeeping edits only

Next Steps

The next UW and WSNA bargaining session is scheduled for June 8 and will be held virtually.

Background

This recap details the fourth virtual session for the renewal of the collective bargaining agreement between the UW and Washington State Nurses Association. Recaps are published online on the UW Labor Relations website.

Tentative Agreements

The parties tentatively agreed to the following:

Article 8 – Education and Professional Development

• Housekeeping edits only

Article 12 – Holiday and Vacation Time Off

• Housekeeping edits only

WSNA Counter Proposals

Full-Time Equivalent – The Union maintained its proposal that a registered nurse who is classified staff at .9 FTE would be defined as full-time, such that salaries and benefits would not be prorated as they are for part-time nurses.

Probationary Period – The Union rejected the Employer’s proposal to allow the probationary period to be extended another three months by mutual agreement of nurse and Employer. Instead, the Union counter-proposed that the evaluation three months into the probationary period, already stipulated by current contract language, would be made in writing, and that the nurse would receive a copy of the evaluation for the nurse’s signature. Under this proposal, any deficiencies in a probationary nurse would be are included in the evaluation, an action plan shall be put in place that will include specific skills and training to address the deficiencies.

Employee files – In response to the Employer’s proposal that notes or files in which an employee was the subject of an investigation or allegation related to sexual misconduct would not be removed from the employee’s file when other files are removed after three years, the Union counter-proposed that only files containing investigations and allegations that resulted in findings of a nurse’s sexual misconduct would be exempt from that removal. The counter-proposal further stated that within one week of adding such a record, the nurse would be notified by the nurse manager and/or Human Resources that such notes or files contain such information.

Work Stoppage – As a counter to the Employer’s proposal that they would not waive their right to bargain mandatory subject of bargaining within the life of the contract, the union proposed to strike the article stating that neither the union nor its members would participate in any strike or work stoppage.

UW Initial Proposals

Development of a Floating Tool – The Employer proposed a new MOU in which the parties would agree to request facilitated mediation from the state of Washington’s Public Employee Relations Commission (PERC) within 90 days of ratification to develop a tiered floating tool. This tool would create an equitable and effective method of responding to changes in staffing needs across all three hospitals: UW Medical Center – Montlake, UW Medical Center – Northwest, and Harborview Medical Center. The parties would commit to meeting at least monthly with the facilitator/mediator, for up to 12 months, to fully discuss and work together to develop a process. Up to four nurses at UWMC-ML would be provided paid time to attend each session. The goals would be to address census fluctuations while supporting a healthy work environment for staff, to increase recruitment and retention through growth opportunities, and to ensure quality patient care.

UW Counter Proposals

Per Diem Night Shift Differential – In response to the Union’s proposal, the Employer proposed to increase the night shift differential for represented per diem nurses from $4.25 to $4.50.

Per Diem Overtime – The Employer accepted the Union’s proposal to add language stating that represented per diem nurses would be paid daily overtime for work in excess of the scheduled shift, including work in advance of a scheduled shift, per existing practice. The Employer proposed to maintain current language stating that hours of work for employees shall be established by the employing official, which the Union had proposed to strike.

Staffing Concerns – The Employer accepted the Union’s proposal that if a staffing situation is not remedied, nurses would be able to file an Assignment Despite Objection (ADO) when safely able to do so, and that no nurse would be retaliated against for filing an ADO. In response to the Union’s other proposals surrounding staffing, the Employer additionally proposed to provide a report on the number of staff and travelers in each unit during Conference Committee each month.

Workplace Violence – In response to the Union’s proposals regarding workplace violence, the Employer proposed to add language to the contract describing the Workplace Violence Prevention Committee, which is tasked with the development, implementation and monitoring of the WPVP plan. Additionally, the Employer proposed that one nurse selected by WSNA could participate in the WVPC Committee on paid time.

Next Steps

The next UWMC – Montlake and WSNA bargaining session is scheduled for May 18 and will be held virtually.