Congressman Keith Ellison Issues Video Supporting MNA Nurses (Page 89)

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1yxdQ0XwKpA]

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In: Bargaining, Nurses Strike

Statement from the Minnesota Nurses Association:
Despite MNA nurses significantly modifying their staffing and wage proposals, there was little progress made in today’s negotiations with the Twin Cities Hospitals. In regards to staffing, MNA removed several components of our proposal that the hospitals felt were too rigid, while at the same time maintaining a maximum patient assignment for each nurse based on the individual needs and acuity (how sick a particular patient is) of each patient assigned to a particular nurse.

MNA also lowered its wage proposal to 3 percent for each year of the contract, which is the same as the 3 percent raise Regions Hospital gave its nurses earlier this month.
… Read more about: June 29 Bargaining Update  »

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In: Duluth Bargaining

Today was our fourth negotiation session with management of SMDC. After meeting for over a month, they finally responded to some of our proposals. In response to our proposal which gives nurses the ability to temporarily close a unit to admissions due to unsafe staffing situations the answer was loud and clear NO.

Jerry Zanko director of employee and labor relations at SMDC said “I have no interest in agreeing to language that isn’t worth the paper it is written on!”  Zanko’s response to whether or not they would have a counter proposal next week was ‘perhaps’.

Management proposed language that would have taken four long time nurses out of the contract.
… Read more about: June 24 Duluth Bargaining Update – SMDC  »

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In: Bargaining, Nurses Strike

JUNE 24, 2010 STATEMENT FROM THE MINNESOTA NURSES ASSOCIATION:
Our nurses spent more than 13 hours today doing our best to stay hopeful about negotiations. Unfortunately, zero progress was made. Despite today’s setback, our nurses offered to return to the bargaining table again on Friday, Saturday, Sunday and every other day until a contract agreement can be reached. Instead, the Twin Cities Hospitals responded that the earliest they could meet would be sometime next week.

It has become beyond obvious to our nurses that the Twin Cities Hospitals, despite what they continue to say publicly, have no interest in meaningful or good faith negotiations.
… Read more about: June 24, 2010 MNA Statement on Negotiations  »