Providence St. Peter Hospital RN
Progress Made: A Successful Day of Bargaining!
On Wednesday, July 9, our bargaining team, representing registered nurses at Providence St. Peter Hospital, met with management for the eighth bargaining session of this contract cycle.
After more than a month since our last session, our team came prepared and eager to make meaningful progress. At the start of the day, nearly all outstanding proposals were with the Employer. Over the course of two morning meetings, we received their responses and had productive exchanges.
By the end of the day, we had traded both economic and non-economic proposals and we're encouraged by the progress made. We reached mutually aligned language on several key non-economic issues, including:
Personnel File Protections: outlining a process for when verbal and written disciplines may be removed from an employee's file.
Equal Opportunity Language: Strengthened protections against discrimination and harassment, including a defined process for feedback and accountability when concerns are raised.
As of the end of the session, only a few important non-economic Articles remain unresolved:
Negotiations Release Time: A proposal to ensure that bargaining team members can be released to attend scheduled negotiations sessions; supporting full, effective representation at the table.
Free Parking Protections: Language to preserve free employee parking for nurses at PSPH—reflecting current practice and preventing future rollbacks.
Pre-Meeting Time for Committees: A proposal to allow 30 minutes of paid time for union members to meet prior to important worksite meetings, such as the Labor-Management and Hospital Staffing Committees.
Steward Pay Protections: Contract language to ensure union stewards remain on paid time while attending grievance meetings or representing coworkers.
Workplace Safety Measures: Proposals to enhance on-campus safety, including a weapon detection system at the Emergency Department entrance, and a particular focus on improvements to security in the hospital parking lot; which we feel are long overdue.
On the economic front, the Employer presented their second wage scale proposal, which included:
An increase to wage rates for nurses at Step 25 & above (reflecting around a 1.75% - 3.5% increase for these steps, compared to the Employer's initial proposal)
Removal of additional "ghost steps"—years where there is no wage increase, leaving only one remaining across their twenty-eight step proposal.
While we appreciate this movement, management's second proposal still brought no changes to any of the other components of our compensation; for example there are still no proposed increases to any of our workplace premiums or differentials.
Most concerning, however, was when we inquired about when we might expect a response to the safe staffing article our team presented back on April 29 (which included minimum nurse to patient ratios, the addition of break relief nurses, and an emergency department contingency staffing plan)—the Employer seemed to indicate that they'd forgotten about it entirely. Considering that this is a highly important issue for us and our coworkers—we're hopeful that bringing this article back to management's attention will result in meaningful responses.
We return to the bargaining table with management for back-to-back sessions on July 23 and 24. Despite some concerns about the Employer's responses, we feel that Wednesday's session was a productive step forward. We're proud of the progress made, and remain committed to pushing forward on issues like wages, workplace safety, and protections that honor and respect the work of all RNs at Providence St. Peter.
Tonight's Contract Action Team Meeting
Thursday, July 10
8:00 PM - 9:00 PM
906 Columbia St SW
- Olympia 98501
Looking Ahead... Next Contract Action Team Meeting
ThursdayJuly 24
8:00 PM - 9:00 PM
906 Columbia St SW
- Olympia 98501
"We made strong progress today! While there are still issues to work through, but it was great that we exchanged so many proposals and really landed on the same page as Providence on so many items... I'm excited about the direction we're heading and to keep this going at our next sessions!"
— Darlett Holm, RN
Your bargaining team: Mary Bloomberg, Surgical Acute RN; Jacob Kostecka, PACU RN; Darlett Holm, SADU West RN; Mike Staley, SADU RN; Ashley McBride, L&D RN; Julia Douglas, Sepsis RN; Grace Kraege, ED RN; Kelly Williams, Inpatient Psychiatry RN; Melanie Oakes, ED RN; Andy Dusablon, PACU RN; Haley Sweet, Neurology RN.
Sign the strike pledge card: We need to show Providence we're ready to do what it takes to get what we deserve. Sign the strike pledge card or ask a fellow member to sign it if they haven't already.
Step up! We need department leaders to keep members engaged in the fight. providence united — UFCW 3000
Organize, organize, organize: Know a worker who wants to join the union? Send them here.
