Issue link: https://nnumagazine.uberflip.com/i/447746
6 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 A P R I L 2 0 0 6 PETALUMA VALLEY HOSPITAL M o r e t h a n 1 5 0 r n s with Petaluma Valley Hospital ratified a new contract in March that specifies a 15.5 percent salary increase over the two -year term and also ensures that the hospitals will emphasize the use of registered nurses, and not lesser- skilled or license staff, in meeting the state's ratio laws. The agreement, which is retroac- tive to Nov. 1, also expands Petaluma's pro- fessional practice committee and includes language to protect RN practice and judg- ment against new technologies. WATSONVILLE COMMUNIT Y HOSPITAL a b o u t 2 6 0 n u r s e s in March approved a new deal with Watsonville Community Hospital that should give them 24 percent raises over the four-year contract. Nurses called the agreement a major step in making the hospital competitive with other area facilities for the retention and recruitment of nurses. ENLOE MEDICAL CENTER a f t e r s o m e t i m e s - c o n t e n t i o u s talks starting in November, some 550 RNs at Enloe Medical Center in Chico voted in March for a new three-year contract, the centerpiece of which is the creation of a healthcare plan for nurses after they retire. Hospital funding will now provide for retirees 62 and older benefits of $1,000 per year of service, up to a lifetime maximum of $25,000. The nurses also won a pay increase of 18 percent over three years, restrictions on unsafe floating, and an agreement by Enloe to establish safer patient lifting poli- cies to prevent back injuries, among other gains. CONTRA COSTA COUNT Y HEALTH SERVICES a b o u t 4 5 0 r e g i s t e r e d n u r s e s with Contra Costa County Health Services reached a tentative agreement with the county just days before a scheduled two-day strike. The 28-month contract was hard won, but described by nurses as positive because critical retiree health and pension benefits were preserved, nurses can expect a 12 per- cent raise over the term of the contract, and practice protections such as RN-to-patient ratios and nurse input into new technologies are now written into the language. Nurses were expected to vote on the deal in late March. —staff report Bargaining Roundup M embers of the RN/NP bargaining team that will be negotiating with Kaiser Permanente this year on behalf of some 14,000 RNs have been elected and are gearing up for the work ahead. To determine bargaining prior- ities, the team has distributed surveys among RN/NP mem- bers and is holding member- ship meetings in April and May to develop final proposals. Bargaining kicks off on June 13. Contact your facility's bargain- ing team member for updates and how to participate. Meet- ing dates will be posted in all facilities. The 2006 Kaiser RN/NP bargaining team members: [Seated] Fran Con- nick, Christina Swift, Deborah Burger, Robert Marth, Cathy Stapelfeld, Patty Esteves, Diane Koorsones. [Middle row] Mirthia Kaufman, Judy Fornoles, Dianna Fashauer, Ivy Cabiness, Monica Smith- Braun, Johan Keyser, Zenei Triunfo-Cortez, Phyllis Brown. [Top row] No. Calif. Bargaining Director Jim Ryder, Trande Phillips, De Calvert, Beverly Elemen, Jerome McCockran, Bonnie Martin, Monica De Witt, Lauri Hoagland, Karin Kidd, Sheila Rowe, Donald Waight, and Kaiser Division Staff Director Joe Lindsay. NewsBriefs KAISER TEAM READIES FOR BARGAINING