National Nurses United

NewsBriefs:Oct Revise 10/15/08 11:53 PM Page 6 NURSES PUT THE PRESSURE ON CPMC CALIFORNIA he security guards trying to hold back the throng of CNA/NNOC nurses at California Pacific Medical Center T decided to back down and run for it when nearly 800 nurses ignored the barricades and marched up to the front doors, shouting "Shame on you." Sutter Health RNs working at CPMC Pennsylvania RNs Win Mandatory Overtime Ban PENNSYLVANIA n oct. 7, 2008, the Pennsylvania State Senate voted unanimously to pass a bill that would ban mandatory overtime for nurses and other caregivers. The bill is now going to the governor, who has committed to sign the ban into law. "We have worked very hard to pass this legislation for over six years," said Patricia Eakin, an RN at Temple University Hospital in Philadelphia and president of the Pennsylvania Association of Staff Nurses & Allied Professionals, an affiliate of CNA/NNOC. "We are thrilled that we will soon have Pennsylvania's patients and their caregivers protected from the unnecessary and dangerous practice of mandatory overtime." The bill will protect RNs, licensed practical nurses, respiratory therapists, and other caregivers from being forced to stay at their job beyond the shift for which they were scheduled. "We know that at the hospitals where we have ended the practice of mandatory overtime through our union contracts, nurses are much happier, and the hospital is perfectly able to cover shifts," added Eakin. "But as long as there are poor working O With the new law, RN Waheedah Glover will no longer be forced to work overtime with a newborn at home. 6 REGISTERED NURSE conditions for nurses in our state and nationally, the nursing profession as a whole suffers. It's a great step forward for all of us." PASNAP nurses next plan to concentrate on winning RN-to-patient safe staffing ratio legislation for their state. —kathleen casey hope that the Sept. 26 rally in San Francisco continues to set the tone for their negotiations with management, who have stubbornly refused to bargain with CNA/NNOC RNs and continue to keep major healthcare takeaways on the table even though all other Sutter Health facilities in Northern California have settled their contracts. "It was so empowering, especially when the security guard ran up the front steps, went in, and locked the front door," said Eileen Prendiville, a NICU RN at CPMC and a member of the bargaining team. "This will show the hospital that we're not running out of steam, we're going to keep it up." And in yet another blow to CPMC, an arbitrator ruled on Sept. 30 that the hospital had to immediately restore healthcare benefits for RNs to former levels, not force RNs to apply for reimbursements as it wanted. This second arbitration victory comes after a first March decision stating that CPMC cannot unilaterally increase fees and copayments for healthcare benefits. —staff report Long Beach RNs Approve New Contract CALIFORNIA bout 1,800 registered nurses at Long Beach Memorial Medical Center, one of the largest hospitals in the West, in October ratified a new three-year contract that addresses the nurses' key priority for patient safety protections along with substantial gains in nurse rights and compensation that will allow the hospital to continue recruiting and retaining RNs. "Our new contract protects our patient advocacy rights as well as our union rights," said Margie Keenan, an RN at LBMMC and a member of the CNA/NNOC Board of Directors. "Protecting the bargaining unit and ensuring that technology supplements our nursing practice will immediately impact our ability to care for our patients." At the heart of the agreement were provisions to institute leading patient safety prac- A W W W. C A L N U R S E S . O R G tices, including incorporation of safe nurse-topatient ratios within the contract, as well as assurances that trained staff will be available to assist with patient lifting, and language ensuring that the introduction of new technology in the hospital will supplement, not supplant, RN professional judgment and the nursing process. The contract also includes important provisions that will allow the hospital to continue to attract nurses from around the nation to work at LBMMC.Key among these was protection of the collective bargaining rights of all nurses, despite recent anti-nurse "Kentucky River" rulings by the Bush labor relations board, along with an average 18 percent salary increase over three years, with many receiving over 20 percent.Senior LBMMC RNs now are among the highest-paid RNs in Southern California. Additional important provisions include increased resources in RN patient care oversight committees and improvement in nursingeducationprocedures. —staff report OCTOBER 2008

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