National Nurses United

C A L I F O R N I A N U R S E W W W . C A L N U R S E S . O R G M A R C H 2 0 0 6 5 T his year promises to be another momentous year for CNA collec- tive bargaining, as contracts cov- ering 34,000 registered nurses—about half of CNA's membership—are up for renegotiation. As was the case last year, common goals include strengthening RNs' abili- ty to safely care for patients and simul- taneously improving wages and working conditions. Bargaining teams will push for contract language that protects RN- to-patient staffing ratios, RN clinical judgment against new technology, and RNs against unsafe floating. The largest group of RNs bargaining are those working with Kaiser Perma- nente. The Kaiser master contract, which expires at the end of August, cov- ers 14,300 RNs spread throughout Northern California in 19 medical cen- ters and about 70 clinics. In addition to the common goals mentioned, Kaiser RN negotiators intend to achieve uniform provisions for all RNs and nurse practitioners in Northern Cali- fornia, as well as retiree medical and pension improvements. Nine thousand University of Califor- nia RNs will be revisiting elements of their contract starting in March. The bargaining will focus on the recruit- ment and retention crisis at UC which has resulted in systematic short staffing in many units. RNs will also be fighting to extend the protection of their retiree health benefits won last year, as well as establishing missed meal and break penalties. As a public sector employer, UC is excluded from the missed meal and break penalty regulations. Besides these two large systems, con- tracts with more than 40 smaller public and private facilities employing a total of about 10,000 nurses are expiring this year or are already bargaining. The pri- vate hospitals include a handful of inde- pendently-owned facilities such as Enloe Medical Center and Oroville Hospital, and a sprinkling of Catholic Healthcare West, Sutter, St. Joseph Health System, and Tenet hospitals. Nurses working for public hospitals are girding themselves for tough talks, as cash-strapped counties across the state will use their poor finances as a reason to offer less-than-competitive wages and benefits. With Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger still touting conver- sion of public employees' defined-ben- efit pensions into more risky defined-contribution retirement pro- grams, such as 401(k)s, public-sector nurses could also be defending their retirement packages against major takeaways or arrangements where new nurses get a lower class of bene- fits so that existing nurses can keep theirs. But unlike private-sector facilities, the individuals that sit on the boards overseeing public hospitals are elected officials, so nurses see a chance, in an election year, to apply public, political, and legislative pressure to their advan- tage. —Staff report M ore than 700 registered nurses with one of Los Angeles Coun- ty's largest remaining nonunion hospitals will be joining CNA after RNs there voted for representation in late January. Registered nurses with Citrus Valley Medical Center, which includes Queen of the Valley campus in West Covina and Inter-Community campus in Cov- ina, voted 358-247 in favor of CNA af- filiation. The National Labor Relations Board secret ballot election is believed to be the largest for RNs in recent years, and came just a few months after an- other successful organizing drive of 800 RNs at Tri-City Medical Center in north- ern San Diego County in November. "This is a victory for patients at Cit- rus Valley," said Barbara Sevilla, a Baby Care Unit RN who has been at the hos- pital 25 years. "RNs want a real voice over patient care and our profession. We want improved benefits and salaries. CNA has an excellent track record in patient advocacy, recruitment and re- tention of experienced nurses." The RNs will next be electing a group of peers to serve as negotiators and conducting research to determine their first contract priorities. —Staff report Bargaining Bonanza Organizing Bears Fruit for Citrus Valley RNs

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