MNA Nurses Stand United During Contract Negotiations (Page 55)

Barb Brady
Barb Brady MNA Communications Specialist

By Barb Brady

MNA Communications Specialist

MNA nurses in more than half of our bargaining units are presenting a united front as they negotiate contracts this year.

Nurses are fighting management attempts to cut hard-earned wages and benefits in communities throughout Minnesota, Wisconsin, North Dakota, and Iowa. We are seeing hospital management in many hospitals seeking to cut or dismantle health insurance plans for our nurses.

Several bargaining units have agreed on new contracts, including Cook Hospital in Cook, Sanford Bagley Medical Center in Bagley, Chippewa County Montevideo Hospital and Medical Clinic in Montevideo, and Methodist Jennie Edmundson Hospital in Council Bluffs, IA.

voteforblog
Metro non-Allina MNA nurses vote for contract January 19

In the Twin Cities, wage-only negotiations resulted in contracts for nurses in five of the six metro hospital systems in January.

Those hospital systems – Fairview, North, Methodist, HealthEast and Children’s – negotiated contracts with 2 percent annual wage increases and ratified them in January.

One hospital system – Allina Health – refused to participate in the wage-only negotiations. Saying it wanted to “change” health insurance, Allina proposed limited-scope bargaining (where each party brings a fixed number of proposals in addition to wages), during which management proposed dismantling MNA health insurance plans.

Allina nurses vote against proposal Feb. 25
Allina nurses vote against proposal Feb. 25

Allina nurses overwhelmingly voted Allina’s entire proposal down on Feb. 25, and full contract negotiations begin April 14. Nurses will continue to fight management attempts to undo the MNA health insurance plans.

In Duluth, St. Luke’s Hospital nurses have had one negotiating session with management where they exchanged proposals. St. Luke’s management is proposing significant contract take-aways, including reductions in health insurance.

St. Luke's bargaining team
St. Luke’s bargaining team

Duluth Essentia nurses begin negotiations later in April.

MNA nurses in Mankato and other communities in Minnesota, Wisconsin, North Dakota, and Iowa will begin negotiations later this year. Visit MNA’s website and Facebook page for updates.

As always, MNA nurses stand ready to support each other during 2016 negotiations. Already, nurses have traveled to attend rallies and events for colleagues miles away, like Bemidji nurses who drove to Bagley to talk with Sanford Bagley Medical Center nurses and management to show unity and offer support.  Dozens of nurses have traveled to the Twin Cities to attend rallies and show support for metro nurses in contract negotiations.

 

 

 

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In: Bargaining, Home

By Barb Brady

MNA Communications Specialist

MNA nurses in more than half of our bargaining units are presenting a united front as they negotiate contracts this year.

Nurses are fighting management attempts to cut hard-earned wages and benefits in communities throughout Minnesota, Wisconsin, North Dakota, and Iowa. We are seeing hospital management in many hospitals seeking to cut or dismantle health insurance plans for our nurses.

Several bargaining units have agreed on new contracts, including Cook Hospital in Cook, Sanford Bagley Medical Center in Bagley, Chippewa County Montevideo Hospital and Medical Clinic in Montevideo, and Methodist Jennie Edmundson Hospital in Council Bluffs, IA.
… Read more about: MNA Nurses Stand United During Contract Negotiations  »

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In: Home, Press Releases

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

(Baudette) – March 24, 2016 – LakeWood Health Center employees will detail how the hospital violated their rights to unionize during a hearing conducted by the National Labor Relations Board in Baudette April 5-8.

The hearing follows a complaint the National Labor Relations Board issued in February that found LakeWood “interfered with, restrained or coerced employees in the exercise of their rights” to unionize.

The complaint was in response to Unfair Labor Practice charges filed by the Minnesota Nurses Association after LakeWood illegally withdrew recognition of the union in the middle of bargaining a first contract.
… Read more about: Press Release: National Labor Relations Board hears charges against LakeWood Health Center at April 5-8 public hearing  »

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In: Home, Press Releases, Standards of Care

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) – March 15, 2016 – Nurse members of the Minnesota Nurses Association reported more than 2,700 incidents of unsafe staffing in Minnesota hospitals last year, according to a qualitative study released today at the Minnesota Nurses Association’s annual lobby day in St. Paul. These incidents are reported in Concern for Safe Staffing (CFSS) forms that nurses file in unsafe situations.

The report issued today showed nurses filed 32.93 percent more CFSS forms in calendar year 2015 than they did in 2014, which totaled 2,062 incidents.
… Read more about: Press Release: Minnesota Nurses Report Record Number of Staffing Incidents in Hospitals  »

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In: Home, Press Releases

 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) – March 10, 2016 – Minnesota Nurses Association Executive Director Rose Roach was appointed to, and chosen to co-chair, a St. Paul task force that will study and make recommendations on extending earned sick and safe time to all employees in the city.

Roach will serve as co-chair of the Earned Sick and Safe Time Task Force, along with St. Paul Human Rights and Equal Economic Opportunity Commission Chair JaPaul Harris and St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce President Matt Kramer.
… Read more about: Press Release: MNA Executive Director appointed to St. Paul Earned Sick and Safe Time Task Force  »

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In: Allina, Bargaining, Healthcare, Home, Hospitals

 

By Mathew Keller, RN JD

MNA Regulatory and Nursing Policy Specialist

It is a common misconception that nurses get great healthcare at a reduced price through their employer. It makes sense. If I work at the car dealership, I get an employee discount on cars, right? Not so for employees in the healthcare field. Despite working with the sickest of the sick, despite having higher rates of work-related injuries and illnesses than any other industry, and despite putting themselves in harm’s way for the sake of their patients every single day, healthcare employees often have sub-par health insurance and access to healthcare. 
… Read more about: Attempts to Diminish RN Healthcare Benefits are Short Sighted  »

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In: Activism, Home, Legislative Policy, Minnesota Nurses Association, Nurses, Politics, Unsafe Staffing

 

By Eileen Gavin

MNA Political Organizer

There is a saying in politics.  “If you are not at the table you are ON the table.” Don’t let that be case this legislative session. The 2016 Minnesota Legislative Session begins March 8 and is scheduled to adjourn May 23. While the physical landscape is literally different this year with the Capitol renovation still underway, the nature of the work remains the same. When your elected officials get back to work, business leaders, lobbyists, advocacy groups, and Minnesotans from all over the state will descend on the Capitol to advance their respective causes.
… Read more about: Come to the table!  »

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In: Home, Hospitals, Nurse education, Nurse licensure, Nurses, Nurses Shortage, Uncategorized

By Mathew Keller, RN, JD

MNA Nursing Policy and Practice Specialist

As this blog detailed last year, fears of a nursing shortage in Minnesota are somewhat unfounded. In fact, at the time, Minnesota was licensing more than three Registered Nurses for every new job opening in the state.

We’ve crunched the numbers once again this year, and it turns out the trend of licensing more RNs than there are jobs for continues. Add to this the fact that the number of job openings for RNs in the state actually decreased last year, and you have a recipe for plenty of competition over every available RN job.
… Read more about: Is There a Nursing Shortage? Part 2  »

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In: Home, Press Releases

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

(Baudette) – February 26, 2016 – LakeWood Health Center “interfered with, restrained or coerced employees in the exercise of their rights” to unionize, according to a complaint issued by the National Labor Relations Board on Feb. 22.

The NLRB complaint was in response to an Unfair Labor Practice charge filed by the Minnesota Nurses Association after LakeWood illegally withdrew recognition of the union in the middle of bargaining a first contract.

“LakeWood clearly violated our rights,” said McCall Plourde, an X-ray technologist at LakeWood.
… Read more about: Press Release: LakeWood Health Center Illegally ‘Coerced,’ ‘Interrogated’ Staff: National Labor Relations Board  »

On:
In: Home, Press Releases

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) – February 25, 2016 – Minnesota Nurses Association nurses from Unity, United, Abbott Northwestern/Phillips Eye Institute, and Mercy hospitals overwhelmingly rejected Allina Health’s offer to eliminate MNA health plans during all-day voting today.

The offer would have ended four different health insurance plans for nurses, which have been part of the MNA contracts for 20 years. Allina offered to keep one of those plans for one year.

“I have very good insurance now. I don’t want to lose that insurance,” said Valerie Johnson, RN at Abbott Northwestern Hospital in Minneapolis.
… Read more about: Press Release: MNA Nurses at Metro Allina Health Hospitals Reject Management Offer  »

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In: Home, Nurse licensure, Nursing

By Mathew Keller RN JD, Regulatory and Policy Nursing Specialist

In order to prevent the spread of communicable diseases, it is standard practice across the healthcare industry for healthcare workers who suspect they may have the signs or symptoms of communicable illness to report their symptoms to infection control.

Indeed, Medicare Conditions for Participation for receiving Medicare reimbursement require facilities to put in place “a system for identifying, reporting, investigating and controlling infections and communicable diseases of patients and personnel.”

So far so good.  It makes sense that healthcare workers who may have a communicable disease should work with infection control personnel to prevent the spread of disease and make sure they are symptom free before they return to work.
… Read more about: Blog: TMI Alert – Is Your Protected Health Information Safe in the Workplace?  »