MNA Nurses Ratify Contract with St. Luke's Hospital (Page 32)

For Immediate Release

Contact:  Rick Fuentes

(o) 651-414-2863
(c) 612-741-0662
rick.fuentes@mnnurses.org

(Duluth, MN) – September 25, 2019 – St. Luke’s nurses have overwhelmingly voted to ratify the tentative agreement reached between the hospital and the Minnesota Nurses Association. The vote sets in place a new three-year contract for St. Luke’s nurses, which will be considered effective as of July 1, 2019.

“Nurses stood up and fought for solutions to the staffing crisis,” said Pete Boyechko, a St. Luke’s nurse and negotiations team member. “We’re proud that the hospital will have to address short staffing situations, and we hope more nurses will be hired so we can safely care for our patients.”

Nurses and the hospital agreed to add contract terms that provide bonuses for nurses called in when the number of patients or the severity of the patients’ conditions are greater than can be safely handled by the nurses on staff.

St. Luke’s nurses will also see their pay scales match those of the Essentia nurses in Duluth by 2020, which will allow the hospital to recruit and retain nurses for the future. MNA nurses will see pay increases of 3%, 3.8%, and 2.25% for each year of the three-year contract, respectively.

Nurses had delivered a strike notice to St. Luke’s Hospital for October 3, but the agreement and ratification vote resulted in the notice being rescinded.

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For Immediate Release

Contact:  Rick Fuentes
(o) 651-414-2863
(c) 612-741-0662
rick.fuentes@mnnurses.org

(Duluth, MN) – September 25, 2019 – St. Luke’s nurses have overwhelmingly voted to ratify the tentative agreement reached between the hospital and the Minnesota Nurses Association. The vote sets in place a new three-year contract for St. Luke’s nurses, which will be considered effective as of July 1, 2019.

“Nurses stood up and fought for solutions to the staffing crisis,” said Pete Boyechko, a St. Luke’s nurse and negotiations team member. “We’re proud that the hospital will have to address short staffing situations, and we hope more nurses will be hired so we can safely care for our patients.”

Nurses and the hospital agreed to add contract terms that provide bonuses for nurses called in when the number of patients or the severity of the patients’ conditions are greater than can be safely handled by the nurses on staff.
… Read more about: MNA Nurses Ratify Contract with St. Luke’s Hospital  »

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In: Education, Home, Nursing Practice, Patient Safety

By Kristina Maki, MS RN CNE

MNA Nurse Educator

 

Retention studies show that CPR skills deteriorate quickly after training. Most of the research shows, without consistent use of the skills, there is a significant decline after just three months. Even if a nurse still has a valid BLS certification card, it might be beneficial to refresh your competency. Still, MNA members have expressed concern about several healthcare facilities moving away from the standardized American Heart Association courses such as Basic Life Support (BLS), Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS), and Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS). Instead, hospitals are moving to facility-created versions.
… Read more about: You Asked for It… And Now You’ve Got It!  »

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In: Bargaining, Duluth Bargaining, Essentia, Home, Hospitals

By Laura Sayles

MNA Government Affairs Specialist

 

Last Tuesday, MNA nurses staged informational pickets at Essentia St. Mary’s and St. Luke’s hospitals in Duluth.  The nurses that work at those hospitals have been working without a contract since June of this year.  They’ve been in negotiations with management but because they were unable to make headway to come to a solution that works for nurses and the hospital management, nurses want patients to know the nurses’ contract affects the care they receive.

 

MNA nurses made the decision to stage an informational picket when they felt that their voices weren’t being heard in negotiations. 
… Read more about: The Power of Collective Action: Duluth Informational Pickets  »

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In: Activism, Education, Minnesota Nurses Association, Nonprofit

By Geri Katz

Manager of Practice, Education and Special Projects

and Megan Gavin

MNA Labor Representative

 

MNA member Hans-Peter de Ruiter, PhD, RN, has retired from the Minnesota Nurses Association Foundation Board of Directors after nine years of service, including five years as chair.

 

Hans has led the MNAF board in awarding scholarships and grants to promising students and nurses whose academic pursuits will help support MNA’s mission and goals and make real improvements in care and building power for nurses. Hans led the MNAF board in expanding scholarship offerings considerably.
… Read more about: Thank you to Dr. Hans-Peter de Ruiter  »

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In: Activism, Bargaining, Essentia, Home

After multiple contract negotiating sessions, MNA nurses in the Twin Ports are turning to the public in their campaign for a fair contract.

Nurses at Essentia and St. Luke’s hospitals in Duluth and Superior packed the July 8 Duluth City Council meeting to share their concerns and ask for councilors’ support as they negotiate new contracts. Their current contracts expired June 30.

Nearly 200 nurses filled the council chamber and hallways as four MNA members and MNA Executive Director Rose Roach addressed councilors about their concerns about patient care, scheduling the appropriate number of nurses to care for patients, and workplace safety.
… Read more about: Spectacular show of solidarity  »

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‘Why not me?’

By Racial Diversity Committee member Dr. Ngozi F. Mbibi, DNP, RNC-OB, FWACN, FAAN

Welcome to the MNA Racial Diversity Committee’s first blog post.

Our committee is only a few months old. We started as a new Racial Diversity Task Force in 2017. (MNA had a similar task force and a work group in the early 2000s.) In 2018, the House of Delegates saw the importance of continuing and expanding our work, and decided we should be a standing committee. Members were appointed at the January 16, 2019, Board of Directors meeting.

We have been meeting monthly ever since and are working on some major projects.
… Read more about: ‘Why not me?’  »

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In: Home, Hospitals, Nurse education, Nurses, Patient Safety

By Jackie Russell, RN JD

MNA Nursing Practice and Regulatory Affairs Specialist

 

My middle-aged male patient worked a labor job. He came to our ED Triage from work wearing jeans and work boots. He was active. He had no significant health history but also chest pain. Because he didn’t have a cardiac history, was otherwise healthy, bright and chatty, he was placed on a monitor in a trauma room for further evaluation. I remember he said he was under stress at work, but I didn’t pry and we talked about other, benign things. Funny how we remember apparently insignificant details about our patients.
… Read more about: The More You Know and the Deskilling of Nursing Practice  »

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Contact:  Rick Fuentes
(o) 651-414-2863
(c) 612-741-0662
rick.fuentes@mnnurses.org
Barbara Brady
(o) 651-414-2849
(c) 651-202-0845
barbara.brady@mnnurses.org

(St. Paul) – June 15, 2019 – Nurses represented by the Minnesota Nurses Association reached a tentative agreement on a new three-year contract with  Children’s Hospitals of Minnesota and withdrew the threat of a nurses’ strike at the hospitals.

The nurses’ and the hospital’s negotiations teams met over a 21-hour session and cooperated to jointly address issues, including the cost of health insurance for MNA nurses.

“Nurses are happy that Children’s recognized that the cost of insurance is a concern that affects the hospital’s competitiveness of attracting and retaining nurses,” said Michelle Cotterell, a sedation nurse at Children’s Minneapolis campus. 
… Read more about: MNA Nurses Reach Agreement with Children’s Hospitals  »

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For Immediate Release
Contact:  Rick Fuentes
(o) 651-414-2863
(c) 612-741-0662
rick.fuentes@mnnurses.org

Barbara Brady
(o) 651-414-2849
(c) 651-202-0845
barbara.brady@mnnurses.org

 

(St. Paul) – June 13, 2019 – Nurses represented by the Minnesota Nurses Association voted overwhelmingly to reject the latest offer by Children’s Hospitals of Minnesota and authorize the negotiating team to call a strike.

A hospital strike must be authorized by a supermajority of the membership there, and the decision of when a strike would begin and how long it would last will be decided by the elected nurse members of the negotiating committee.
… Read more about: Press Release: MNA Nurses Reject Children’s Contract Offer, Authorize Strike  »

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In: Events, Minnesota Nurses Association, Nurses

MNA annually recognizes nurses who made important achievements in practice, research, activism and more at the Honors and Awards Ceremony at the MNA Convention. MNA nurses are doing incredible things in our communities! Do you know a nurse who has gone above and beyond and should receive an award and recognition of their work? The deadline for nominations for the MNA Honors and Awards is July 1.

Submit your nominations here!

*note originally published January 24

 

By Deb Meyer, RN


… Read more about: Don’t Miss Your Chance to Recognize the Outstanding Nurses in Your Life  »Deb Meyer, RN
Practice and Education Commissioner

Practice and Education Commissioner

Nurses are doing great things every day, and we need to recognize these nurses, which we do annually at the the Minnesota Nurses Association Honors and Awards banquet during the annual convention in October.