From the MNA Children’s Bargaining Team:
Today thirty-five years of negotiations history came down to twelve minutes with the employer. Today many of our Nurses came to tell their stories and show their support for our Care managers and our staffing proposal. The employer finally arrived at 11:40 after all the nurses had left (perhaps management was aware of their presence and delayed their arrival to avoid the nurses?) The employer’s last concessionary (take-back) offer, which is unchanged from last week, is what they want us to vote on.
The employer has been unwilling to engage in any meaningful dialogue about any of the proposals that we have brought to the table. They have refused to negotiate on our issues of patient safety, patient advocacy, and patient protection. It is clear they have no intention to bargain with Children’s Nurses.
In a good faith effort to move negotiations forward, we modified our staffing proposal. This staffing proposal should not be controversial for the employer because it reflects the optimal staffing methodology we have today, using our Grasp acuity tool, nursing intensity measures, and the professional judgment of our charge nurses. Our staffing proposal was drafted in response to the numerous “Concern for Safe Staffing” reports that have been filed by Children’s Nurses.
The end result of two months of bargaining with this employer is that you are now faced with voting on take-backs. The Employer’s entire focus has been to gut our contracts. When the employer says they have moved off of some of their proposals, make no mistake – they left nothing but take-backs on the table. There is nothing in this offer that supports or strengthens nursing practice and our professional duty to advocate for our patients.
We unconditionally dropped some of our proposals and modified others in order to sharpen our focus on patient safety, patient protection and patient advocacy. The employer indicated a mediator was available. The assistance of a mediator was not requested by either side.
In order for us to advocate for our patients and preserve and advance our profession, we (your negotiations team) recommend rejection of the employer’s take-back offer and the authorization of a strike.
For more details, come and talk with your Children’s negotiations team at all-nurse meetings:
Minneapolis: Monday May 17th at 4:00 a.m., 7:30 a.m., 11:00 a.m., 1:30 p.m., 3:30 p.m. 6:00 p.m. & 7:30 p.m. in the Education Center.
St. Paul: Monday May 17th at 6:00 a.m. – noon at L100, and Tuesday May 18th at 1:00p.m. – 8:00 p.m. in the John Nasseff Heart Center, in the St. Luke’s room.
Voting will take place at the River Center in St. Paul from 6:00 a.m. – 10:00 p.m. on Wednesday May 19th.
In Solidarity,
Peg McIntosh Cathy Seckinger
Deb Haugen Marcy McCracken
Melissa Hansing Elaina Hane
Nellie Munn Sydney Pederson