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March 5, 2003
Nurses visit Leg to find out where their bargaining has gone
The United Nurses of Alberta negotiating committee visited the provincial Legislative Assembly today to find out where their bargaining has gone.
Twelve nurses from across the province who negotiate on behalf of the province’s nearly 20,000 Registered Nurses and Registered Psychiatric Nurses sat in on Question Period.
“The government announcements about legislation has put our collective bargaining completely up in the air,” said UNA President Heather Smith. “It has complicated and confused the issues and even creates uncertainty about what to bargain. They seem to have moved bargaining right over to the Legislature.”
“We are trying to negotiate safe levels of registered nursing care, but the government is putting these wrenches in the works,” Smith says. “Once again they are turning our health system upside down with changes. It’s hardly reassuring for patients or Albertans.”
The government says it wants to maintain good relations with the unions but it will be legislating severe limits on many union members. Taking away the most basic right to strike is no step forward.
“Restricting health workers from striking in the past has not brought smooth labour relations, and eliminating rights from more nurses will not solve problems,” says Smith.
The government says it will take away the possibility of union membership from a whole category of registered nurses, the advanced nurse practitioners. At the same time it’s going to keep other nurses from choosing which union they belong to. Government is going to assign them to a union.
“We went into negotiations with the objective of guaranteeing safe levels of nursing care. For whatever reasons the government is bringing forward this legislation, it certainly is not, as Mr. Klein said in the Legislature for “better patient care.” And it certainly is not, as Mr. Klein said, an “expedient way” to resolve negotiations. Last round of bargaining we had an agreement by March 2.”
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