For Immediate Release April 11, 2003
Nurses tell their negotiating committee
no strike, remain in negotiations
EDMONTON – UNA members from across the province ruled out strike action as part of their negotiating strategy. Meeting in Edmonton, the nurses directed their negotiating committee to remain at the negotiating table and reach an acceptable settlement. The special meeting of Local UNA Presidents told the committee not to seek a mandate for job action from the membership and that all efforts should be directed at negotiating a good agreement.
“We got strong direction from the Presidents that they don’t want any threat of a strike. There is enough chaos out there in the health system with staff shortages and the move to the new Health Regions,” says UNA President Heather Smith.
Nurses at the meeting were considering bargaining strategies and new proposals that will work in the Bill 27 mandated Region-wide contracts.
“The Health Regions responded this week to our proposal for the Region-wide bargaining units created by Bill 27,” Heather Smith said. “Up until Wednesday, the Health Regions had given us no indication were ready to negotiate this provincially. We were facing a long haul of bargaining for each Region separately.”
Bill 27 will put all Registered nurses employed by each Health Region under a single collective agreement. Public health nurses, hospital nurses, mental health nurses and long-term care nurses at different sites have all had separate agreements. With Bill 27 they will all be under one common agreement.
Significant bargaining issues remain. Top of the list for nurses is the Employer demand to end the nurse-in-charge provision that requires a Registered nurse to be on duty on all units. The nurse-in-charge clause is the only requirement in the province that guarantees staffing by qualified Registered nurses in hospitals.
The Health Regions also want to be able to move their Employees to any site, within a 100- kilometer radius.
“Under the Employers’ plan, a nurse could report to work and be told to go to another hospital 100 kilometers away for the balance of her shift,” Heather Smith says. “They could move a nurse each day, or permanently post the nurse to a new location. Lots of flexibility for the Health Regions, but what would that do to staff morale? It certainly wouldn’t help recruit or retain more nurses.”
The Health Regions are also still looking for the power to require nurses to work permanent night or evening shifts. Nurses who want to can work permanent night or evening shifts now. But giving the Employers the power to assign permanent night shifts is unfair for nurses and would drive nurses that we desperately need out of the profession or out of the province.
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