NYC RNs DID IT AGAIN!!!!!!!

forgive me for bragging but.........

NYSNA RNS IN NYC DID IT AGAIN!!!!!!

Just 2 short yrs ago, the 1600 RNs at a famous NYC hospital were 1 hr away from walking out on strike over staffing issues when the hospital finally blinked first & gave in to an offer the nurses could accept. Obviously the administration learned its lesson about NYSNA nurse unity & strength from that experience because THIS time,....... without even having the threat of a strike......

Nurses at Presbyterian Approve Breakthrough Contract

New York City, Dec. 21, 2001

Registered nurses at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center Thursday overwhelmingly approved a three-year contract that provides safe staffing guarantees, health coverage upon retirement, and breakthrough base salaries that will exceed $60,000 the highest in city. The 1,600
RNs are represented by the New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA). Their most recent two-year contract was due to expire on Dec. 31.......

This contract gives RNs at Presbyterian the best contract in the city, said Donna Verry, NYSNA nursing representative. It shows that after several years of rocky relations, there was a real effort on the hospitals part to address the nursing shortage and make Columbia-Presbyterian an attractive place for RNs to work. The agreement includes:

Safe staffing guarantees: A mechanism to allow the nurses to enforce unit-by-unit, shift-by-shift guidelines for safe RN staffing will be expanded throughout the entire hospital. Under their most recent contract, this enforceability provision was in effect in only one area of the hospital. Guidelines can be enforced through grievance and third-party arbitration if they are not implemented by hospital management. A full-time labor
management committee will also be established to continuously monitor staffing levels and staffing related problems..........

Retiree health: Recognizing that health care coverage is an important issue for veteran registered nurses, this contract will provide retiring RNs with up to $2,500 each year tax free to cover the cost of purchasing health insurance.........

Salary: The nurses will receive a 12% salary increase over the life of the contract. The base rate for staff nurses will increase from its current $48,500 to $60,570 in the contracts final year. RNs will also receive a retention bonus equal to 1% of their salary in the contracts third year........

Additional compensation: The cap on the experience differential was raised from $25,000 after 29 years to $29,000 after 32 years, while the differential for working the evening and night shifts was raised from $5,400 per year to $6,000 per year. Veteran RNs who also mentor orientees called preceptors will also receive a raise in their pay for such duties........

Continuing education: Recognizing the need to help RNs keep their job skills current, the contract increases tuition reimbursement from 15 credits and $6,000 per year to 18 credits and $10,000 per year. The contract also increases the amount of time an RN is eligible to take as sick leave, and provides for additional labor-management committees to work on other workplace issues............

This contract reflects a dramatic change in the status of labor management relations at the facility. It was negotiated in just 12 sessions and completed before the expiration of the current agreement - something that has not happened in the last 20 years. Just two years ago, the nurses were just minutes away from striking because of disagreements on staffing issues.........

The hospital understands the need to maintain communication between management and the nurses is ongoing, Verry said. Thanks to the collective effort of the nurses, management now recognizes its obligation to provide for appropriate nurse staffing and safe patient care.........

With more than 33,000 members, NYSNA is the leading organization for registered nurses in New York State and is one of the largest representatives of RNs for collective bargaining in the nation. A multi-purpose organization, NYSNA fosters high standards for nursing education and practice, works to advance the profession through legislative activity. NYSNA is a member of the American Nurses Association (ANA) and a founding member of its national nurses labor union - the United American Nurses (UAN). For more information, call Mark Genovese at 518.782.9400, ext. 353.
NYSNA: http://www.NYSNA.org >>>>>>

These 1,600 unionized nurses just raised the bar for every nurse in our entire city. If one hospital can recognize the importance of these improvements & can find a way to provide for decent salaries & safe staffing, more can. I can just imagine how many RN applications Presby is going to start receiving tomorrow from nurses all over the tri-state area........ and I cant wait to see what happens with other contract negotiations that will be coming up at other hospitals after this.