On Monday, December 16, our Mary Bridge Registered Nurses (RNs) again joined forces with the Diabetes Educator nurses to continue negotiations with MultiCare over our 2024 Collective Bargaining Agree
Read MoreOn Tuesday, October 1, your MultiCare Mary Bridge Registered Nurses and Diabetes Educator Nurses met management at the bargaining table to continue negotiations on our Collective Bargaining Agreement and to introduce the Diabetes Educators into our union.</strong> This is our third bargaining date with MultiCare since we began discussions in late August, and the progress we've made in such a short time is worth noting. Additionally, this session also marks the first time we’ve received responses from the Employer regarding the transition of the Diabetes Educator RNs into our union. While there’s still work to be done here, MultiCare appears aligned with our goal of accelerating their integration into our unit.
Read MoreRegarding the economic proposals for the main RN contract, because we’re still awaiting MultiCare’s response we decided it was best to hold off on addressing a few of the other Articles we’ve been discussing with Management; an approach that allows us to carefully weigh all our priorities as a team. While this decision was challenging, we believe that receiving strong compensation proposals from MultiCare will better inform our evaluation of our top priorities. Our goal is to maximize benefits for the greatest number of nurses, and we are committed to achieving that.
Read MoreOur historic win at MultiCare this year has sparked excitement from non-union workers at MultiCare worksites across the state. Our Union has shown that when workers fight together, they win together! Recently, we welcomed two more MultiCare units that have joined our union to make our fight stronger: Mary Bridge Diabetes Educator RNs and Women's Centers Workers.
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We’re excited to announce that nurses at Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital voted overwhelmingly to ratify their new contract on Tuesday!
If you have any questions about our next contract, please reach out to a Bargaining Team member or call Union Representative Kent Tse at (206) 436-6512.
Our Bargaining Team has reached a tentative agreement with Management on a new three-year collective bargaining agreement for Registered Nurses at Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital. We are excited to announce that this tentative agreement includes:
Historic wage increases
Elimination of all ghost steps on the wage scale (steps with no wage increases),
$500 ratification bonus, prorated by FTE,
Increases to a number of wage premiums including shift differential, standby pay, weekend premium, charge nurse pay, and preceptor pay,
Improved charge nurse language allowing nurses to object to the assignment,
No health care premium increases next year with caps in subsequent years,
And so much more!
We also added the spot bonus incentive program into this agreement; however, we were not able to maintain our current Appendix G incentive plan. In exchange, we were able to add more money in other portions of the agreement. It would also conform our incentive program with other MultiCare RN contracts, including Tacoma General Hospital.
The full details of the offer will be made available during our online vote meeting on Monday, October 4.
It’s extremely important that members attend the zoom meeting to get a full understanding of the employer’s offer and have your questions answered. However, voting will not take place at this meeting.
We will be voting online via “SimplyVoting” on Tuesday, October 5. You will be receiving an email from UFCW 21 via “SimplyVoting” with your unique login information.
In order to vote, everyone needs to make sure their personal email is up to date in our records. If you did not receive this announcement via email, please update your information HERE
If you do not receive an email to vote on Monday, October 5, then please reach out to Union Representative Kent Tse at (206) 436-6512 to provide an updated email address.
Your Bargaining Team has been negotiating with Management since June 28. We’re happy to report that we’ve made significant progress on most issues, including the historic wage increases that Management reported in their bargaining update to you this week.
After taking about seven months to negotiate the technical and service agreements, Management expressed a desire to come to a quick agreement on your contract. While your Bargaining Team shares the same sentiment, we must ensure that our agreement is in the best interests of our members.
When we met with Management on September 10, MultiCare presented your Bargaining Team with a package proposal that was very close to what we believe will be the final agreement. However, we have significant concerns about the ultimatum presented regarding incentive pay plans. Management’s offer gave the team two options:
A. Keep the current incentive plan under Appendix G, which provides a double-time incentive when very specific metrics have been met. With this plan, Management does not have control when or if the plan is activated.
B. OR Remove the current Appendix G incentive plan and replace it with the Spot Bonus Incentive Pay plan.
The Union’s proposal is that we improve the current Appendix G incentive plan while also adding the Spot Bonus Plan. We believe the Spot Bonus Plan has served our members and the community well, helping staff our hospital throughout the current crisis, but it should operate in conjunction with our current metrics-based plan.
In Management’s bargaining update this week, they have claimed that “operationally we only have the capacity to manage one incentive plan.” We are confused by this statement because, during negotiations over the technical contract, Management agreed to let Respiratory Therapists keep their metrics-based plan while still allowing them to add the Spot Bonus Incentive into their contract.
Why does Management think that Respiratory Therapists deserve both plans, but Registered Nurses do not? This question is the roadblock to a deal.
We’d also like to fact-check their claim that the Union rejected their offer. While we did express that a rejection was likely, we never officially rejected their offer. It was the Union’s intention to work through the incentive pay issue so we could reach an agreement.
Despite our frustration with Management’s misrepresentation of the facts, your Bargaining Team is still committed to working on reaching an agreement when we meet again on September 21 provided, however, that it’s a fair contract.
Bargaining Team: Holly Gindhart, Jill Piacitelli, Valina McGilvray
“Cautiously opportunistic, looking forward to our next date.”
—Our Bargaining Team: Jill Piacitelli, Holly Gindhart, Valina McGilvray
Management’s offer didn’t include any surprises and, while they didn’t agree to most of our proposals, we do feel that progress was made. In fact, we were able to come to agreements on a couple of minor language amendments to both preceptor pay and the conference committee.
We responded to their offer by adding several new proposals, including:
NEW wage premium when floating outside of Mary Bridge Children’s hospital...
NEW language to establish stable/regular scheduling practices...
Removal of the “callback that overlaps a scheduled shift” loophole...
Increased continuing education money with annual roll-over of unused funds...
...and enhancements to our incentive pay programs.
Your Bargaining Team is still working on an economic proposal, which will include proposed wage increases that would make Mary Bridge more competitive with neighboring hospitals. We plan to have our wage proposal ready when we meet with the Employer again on July 30.
NEW BSN DIFFERENTIAL!
We are happy to announce that we’ve come to an agreement on a new $1.00/hr wage premium for anyone holding a Bachelor of Nursing (BSN), Master of Nursing (MN), Master of Science in Nursing (MSN), or PhD. Our agreement to create a new BSN differential is effective immediately, however, to qualify you’ll have to submit proof of completion (degree or transcript) to the Employee Resource Center. Please contact your Union Representative if you have any questions.
JOIN US TONIGHT!
Join your bargaining team at our first Contract Action Team (CAT) meeting. These virtual meetings are open to all Mary Bridge RNs and are a great opportunity to get involved in the bargaining process and hear the latest news.
July 20, 6:30PM
Contact your Bargaining Team or Union Rep for call-in details. Details will be also emailed out.
“Excited to start negotiations, looking forward to our next bargaining date!”
—Our Bargaining Team: Jill Piacitelli, Holly Gindhart, Valina McGilvray
Your bargaining team met with management for the first time on June 28, kicking-off negotiations for the Mary Bridge RN contract.
At this session the Union presented our initial proposal, which included primarily non-economic items for management consideration. Our initial proposal included language that would make the charge nurse assignment voluntary, streamline the process for reporting staffing concerns, enhancement of bereavement leave, and more. Your bargaining team is working on many other proposals, but we’re hoping to get the easier items settled before we get into more contentious topics like wages and benefits.
While the employer did not have enough time to send over a counteroffer, their initial response to our proposal seemed encouraging. We expect to receive their first proposal at our next session on Friday, July 16.
You’re Invited!
Join your bargaining team at our first Contract Action Team (CAT) meeting. These virtual meetings are open to all Mary Bridge RNs and are a great opportunity to get involved in the bargaining process and hear the latest news.
Health care workers, faith leaders, labor unions, and community allies in Pierce County planned a car caravan around MultiCare-owned Tacoma General and Mary Bridge Children’s Hospitals today, in support of a fair contract for MultiCare’s essential workers. Workers who risked their lives to show up for patients during a yearlong global health crisis are now having to fight for pay that respects their work, for their own access to affordable health care, and for safe staffing in their hospitals and clinics. Workers have been bargaining since January with little movement from MultiCare in agreeing to fair wages and working conditions, and the Tacoma and Pierce County community is ready to step up and support their health care workers.
But before the caravan could begin, MultiCare sent a last-minute cease and desist letter to block it from taking place, saying they consider cars with signs to be unlawful picketing activity and threatening legal action if it continued.
We thank the Tacoma NAACP, Tacoma DSA, Union of American Physicians and Dentists, Tacoma Ministerial Alliance, Political Destiny, Unite Here Local 8, and SEIU 1199NW for joining us today and for committing to this fight for health care workers’ rights and for safe, quality patient care in Tacoma and Pierce County. MultiCare workers have taken care of our community through a traumatic year, and it’s time for MultiCare to take care of its workers.
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