SPNN Bargaining Update #3

July 2016

At Tuesday’s bargaining session, Sharp management responded to a Union proposal on Article 14 - Hours of Work & Overtime, with language that would reduce protections and rights that we currently have in our contract.

Section 1409 – Weekend Scheduling:

“If a Registered Nurse fails to work his/her scheduled weekend shift, the restrictions on weekend scheduling set forth in this Section shall not apply.”

This means if a nurse was ill during a scheduled weekend shift, (s)he would be forced to work and cover an additional weekend shift.

This is the opposite of the intent of the Union proposal to management that registered nurses may volunteer and choose to work every weekend or work one shift every weekend of the month or continue under the current language working two weekend shifts during a month.

Other news from the third day of bargaining on July 19 included reaching Tentative Agreements (TAs) on changes in Article 22, Safety and Health. The agreed to language improves protection against infectious or contagious illness our patients may have contracted.
Section 2203, Infections or Contagious Disease will now include that once a patient's diagnosis is confirmed, the exposed registered nurses shall be informed as expeditiously as is reasonably possible, not to exceed seventy-two hours.

Section 2204, Response Teams will now include that RNACs at each facility will routinely review acts of physical violence or threats that registered nurses may face. All remaining protections in Article 22 were maintained.

Agreement was reached to maintain current contractual language for the Preamble, Article 2-Courtesy, Article 6-Non-Discrimination, Article 13-Economic Action, Article 19-Medical Insurance, and Article 21-Savings Clause. All rights and protections in these Articles are maintained and preserved.

Unfortunately, Sharp hospital administration has not accepted several of our Union’s proposals that would have improved registered nurses' working conditions, standards, and protections. Sharp management made several proposals to reduce protections and rights that we currently have in our contract.

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