From Nellie Munn, RN, Member of MNA’s Children’s Bargaining Team:
“Effective patient advocacy depends on the collective voice of the nurses.”
Today we presented management with a more focused package of proposals aimed at reaching a fair contract settlement that includes gains in language around safe staffing and patient protection. In this package we offered to drop some of our proposals, conditioned upon management dropping some of theirs and accepting proposals that reflect our top priorities.
In an effort to ensure staffing levels to provide safe care and to advocate for patients, we presented our staffing proposal once again. This proposal would hold the employer accountable to staff based on patient acuity, nursing intensity and professional nursing judgment, while also taking into account fluctuations in census. It would require management to budget sufficient resources to each unit to meet capacity and demand. It would strengthen previous agreements on acuity, by making safe staffing an enforceable priority across all units.
Once again, the employer showed no interest in any of our proposals, including staffing for patient safety. They claim that their concessions already contain proposals related to staffing. Upon closer review, the employer pointed to their Mandatory LOA concession as a “staffing” proposal. In addition, management claimed that when there are too many RN’s on staff, that patients are at risk, including an increase in patient falls. No references were cited for this claim. High levels of HPPD are more likely in places where patients are at higher risk with more intense needs, but higher levels of Nurse staffing do not harm patients. This defies common sense.
Although the employer proposed to drop many of their concessionary proposals, there are still significant concessions remaining on the table. We have not agreed to any concessions. There are no agreements between the MNA and the employer at this time.
This week one of our metro RN colleagues used this analogy to describe the employer’s strategy: Its like they walked into your house and stole all your furniture and then tried to sell it back to you. This is our contract, we earned it over many years and we are not prepared to concede our hard earned agreements. We will not concede our nursing practice and judgment to the employer. We will foster and protect the terms and conditions of employment conducive to quality patient care now, and in the future.
Remember that what happens away from the negotiating table will drive what happens at the table. If we stand strong in solidarity, we will win.
Nellie Munn – MPLS Children’s Bargaining Team