Nurses Rally in DC scheduled for May 6th

Nurses Activism

Published

This event is organized by the United American Nurses (UAN) - the national RN-only labor union (the union branch of the ANA), and 6 other healthcare unions of the AFL-CIO, representing RNs, LPNs, and healthcare workers. Its part of our national campaign to fight for safe staffing. All RNs, LPNs, interested healthcare workers (union members and non-members), student nurses, and anybody who might ever be a pt, are invited to participate:

AFL-CIO Nurses: A United Voice for Safe Staffing -

press release

America Needs Safe Staffing--Stat!

The nation's hospitals are dangerously short-staffed. When overworked nurses are responsible for too many patients, they worry about providing safe and effective care.

Inadequate staffing is jeopardizing quality patient care and driving experienced, committed nurses from their profession. Safe staffing can save lives--and AFL-CIO Nurses are working together to make our hospitals safer.

Across the country, safe staffing standards have been the top priority for nurses and their unions, who have waged campaigns for safe staffing legislation in more than 15 states.

Now, half a million nurses from seven of these unions have joined together in the fight for safe staffing, forming the AFL-CIO Nurses: A United Voice for Safe Staffing.

Nurses Week: During National Nurses Week, May 4 -10, all across the country, the AFL-CIO Nurses, AFL-CIO unions and other nurses will hold meetings with lawmakers, join together in rallies and host other events to build support for state legislation to set safe staffing levels and restrict mandatory overtime in hospitals.

Nurses Day Rally in Washington, D.C.: On May 6, 2003, nurses from across the nation will take their demands for safe staffing and quality patient care to Congress. The results of a national public opinion survey about the effects of the nurse crisis on patient care will also be released at this time.

All are invited to join in the May 4 -10 rallies, meetings with lawmakers and other actions in their states across the country, and in the special lobbying day in Washington, D.C., on Nurses Day, May 6.

These rallies kick off the national AFL-CIO Nurses Campaign, which is geared to help pass much-needed federal legislation on safe nurse staffing standards.

see below:

AFL-CIO Nurses Reform Agenda.

Who we are.

Action tools.

AFL-CIO Nurses: a united voice for safe staffing.

AFL-CIO Nurses Reform Agenda

Half a million nurses from AFL-CIO unions have launched a national campaign for safe staffing standards. Why? Because:

* We want quality care for patients.

* We want to keep trained, experienced nurses in hospitals.

* We want hospitals to employ enough registered nurses to care for critically ill patients.

* We need safe staffing legislation.

The nation's nurse shortage is acute. In 2001, hospital facilities operated with 126,000 fewer nurses than they needed for safe staffing, according to the American Hospital Association. There are 500,000 licensed registered nurses in this country who are not working in patient care even though they are qualified to do so. Surveys show the majority of the nurses who left direct patient care give inadequate staffing as the reason. Meanwhile, evidence supports what front-line nurses know all too well: Low staffing levels are compromising patient safety.

In 2002, the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations issued a report confirming understaffing as a contributing factor in 24 percent of all accidental patient deaths and injuries in hospitals. Adequate staffing levels have proven to save lives. Nursing professor Linda Aiken and her colleagues from the University of Pennsylvania found that when a hospital decreases a registered nurse's patient load from eight patients to four, the risk that a surgical patient will die within 30 days is decreased by 31 percent.

Inadequate staffing is unacceptable. It is endangering patients' lives; it is driving nurses from health care.

There is ample research to establish minimum nurse staffing levels for hospitals. Therefore, for patients and for nurses, America needs safe staffing ratios, NOW.

Who We Are:

We are half a million AFL-CIO Nurses - unionized nurses of 7 different AFL-CIO unions. We work in hospitals around the country and have come together to push state and federal laws that limit the number of patients assigned to a nurse. We want quality care for patients. We want to keep trained, experienced nurses in hospitals--and that's why we have a reform agenda to ensure that our lawmakers make safe staffing a priority.

Action Tools available

Talking points for safe staffing.

Safe staffing flier for Nurses Day action - May 6.

Safe staffing brochure.

To download, click on links at http://www.aflcio.org/issuespolitics/healthpolicy/nurses/.

AFL-CIO Nurses: A United Voice for Safe Staffing -

In an unprecedented action, half a million nurses from seven unions have joined together in the fight for safe staffing.

Visit their websites for more information:

United American Nurses

AFGE;

AFSCME--United Nurses of America;

AFT--Healthcare;

Communications Workers of America;

SEIU--Nurse Alliance

United Food and Commercial Workers.

links at http://www.aflcio.org/issuespolitics/healthpolicy/nurses/#events

Check website to get updates on the AFL-CIO Nurses Campaign to pass federal legislation on safe nurse staffing standards and for sample letters and other ways to contact legislators.

###

feel free to copy & pass along

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This event is organized by the United American Nurses (UAN) - the national RN-only labor union (the union branch of the ANA), and 6 other healthcare unions of the AFL-CIO, representing RNs, LPNs, and healthcare workers. Its part of our national campaign to fight for safe staffing. All RNs, LPNs, interested healthcare workers (union members and non-members), student nurses, and anybody who might ever be a pt, are invited to participate:

AFL-CIO Nurses: A United Voice for Safe Staffing -

press release

America Needs Safe Staffing--Stat!

The nation's hospitals are dangerously short-staffed. When overworked nurses are responsible for too many patients, they worry about providing safe and effective care.

Inadequate staffing is jeopardizing quality patient care and driving experienced, committed nurses from their profession. Safe staffing can save lives--and AFL-CIO Nurses are working together to make our hospitals safer.

Across the country, safe staffing standards have been the top priority for nurses and their unions, who have waged campaigns for safe staffing legislation in more than 15 states.

Now, half a million nurses from seven of these unions have joined together in the fight for safe staffing, forming the AFL-CIO Nurses: A United Voice for Safe Staffing.

Nurses Week: During National Nurses Week, May 4 -10, all across the country, the AFL-CIO Nurses, AFL-CIO unions and other nurses will hold meetings with lawmakers, join together in rallies and host other events to build support for state legislation to set safe staffing levels and restrict mandatory overtime in hospitals.

Nurses Day Rally in Washington, D.C.: On May 6, 2003, nurses from across the nation will take their demands for safe staffing and quality patient care to Congress. The results of a national public opinion survey about the effects of the nurse crisis on patient care will also be released at this time.

All are invited to join in the May 4 -10 rallies, meetings with lawmakers and other actions in their states across the country, and in the special lobbying day in Washington, D.C., on Nurses Day, May 6.

These rallies kick off the national AFL-CIO Nurses Campaign, which is geared to help pass much-needed federal legislation on safe nurse staffing standards.

see below:

AFL-CIO Nurses Reform Agenda.

Who we are.

Action tools.

AFL-CIO Nurses: a united voice for safe staffing.

AFL-CIO Nurses Reform Agenda

Half a million nurses from AFL-CIO unions have launched a national campaign for safe staffing standards. Why? Because:

* We want quality care for patients.

* We want to keep trained, experienced nurses in hospitals.

* We want hospitals to employ enough registered nurses to care for critically ill patients.

* We need safe staffing legislation.

The nation's nurse shortage is acute. In 2001, hospital facilities operated with 126,000 fewer nurses than they needed for safe staffing, according to the American Hospital Association. There are 500,000 licensed registered nurses in this country who are not working in patient care even though they are qualified to do so. Surveys show the majority of the nurses who left direct patient care give inadequate staffing as the reason. Meanwhile, evidence supports what front-line nurses know all too well: Low staffing levels are compromising patient safety.

In 2002, the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations issued a report confirming understaffing as a contributing factor in 24 percent of all accidental patient deaths and injuries in hospitals. Adequate staffing levels have proven to save lives. Nursing professor Linda Aiken and her colleagues from the University of Pennsylvania found that when a hospital decreases a registered nurse's patient load from eight patients to four, the risk that a surgical patient will die within 30 days is decreased by 31 percent.

Inadequate staffing is unacceptable. It is endangering patients' lives; it is driving nurses from health care.

There is ample research to establish minimum nurse staffing levels for hospitals. Therefore, for patients and for nurses, America needs safe staffing ratios, NOW.

Who We Are:

We are half a million AFL-CIO Nurses - unionized nurses of 7 different AFL-CIO unions. We work in hospitals around the country and have come together to push state and federal laws that limit the number of patients assigned to a nurse. We want quality care for patients. We want to keep trained, experienced nurses in hospitals--and that's why we have a reform agenda to ensure that our lawmakers make safe staffing a priority.

Action Tools available

Talking points for safe staffing.

Safe staffing flier for Nurses Day action - May 6.

Safe staffing brochure.

To download, click on links at http://www.aflcio.org/issuespolitics/healthpolicy/nurses/.

AFL-CIO Nurses: A United Voice for Safe Staffing -

In an unprecedented action, half a million nurses from seven unions have joined together in the fight for safe staffing.

Visit their websites for more information:

United American Nurses

AFGE;

AFSCME--United Nurses of America;

AFT--Healthcare;

Communications Workers of America;

SEIU--Nurse Alliance

United Food and Commercial Workers.

links at http://www.aflcio.org/issuespolitics/healthpolicy/nurses/#events

Check website to get updates on the AFL-CIO Nurses Campaign to pass federal legislation on safe nurse staffing standards and for sample letters and other ways to contact legislators.

###

feel free to copy & pass along

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Appreciate this post jt! Thank you!!

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Appreciate this post jt! Thank you!!

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Wish there were a way for me to join this union. I live in a "right to work" state.

There are no unions here at all.

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Wish there were a way for me to join this union. I live in a "right to work" state.

There are no unions here at all.

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I think there should be some way for nurses who are at work to participate, like a moment of silence, or something.

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I think there should be some way for nurses who are at work to participate, like a moment of silence, or something.

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Below is the list of current states that make up the UAN. Some of the states already in the UAN may suprise you:

Alabama State Nurses Association

Alaska Nurses Association

Colorado Nurses Association

District of Columbia

Florida Nurses Association

Georgia Nurses Association

Illinois Nurses Association

Iowa Nurses Association

Kansas State Nurses Association

Kentucky Nurses Association

Michigan Nurses Association

Minnesota Nurses Association

Missouri Nurses Association

Montana

Nebraska

New Jersey State Nurses Association

New York State Nurses Association

North Carolina Nurses Association

Ohio Nurses Association

Oregon Nurses Association

US Virgin Islands Nurses Association

Washington State Nurses Association

West Virginia Nurses Association

Wyoming Nurses Association

http://www.ana.org/dlwa/barg/index.htm

As you can see, nurses are unionizing with the UAN in right to work states and Southern states too. The UAN also has the capability to directly represent groups of RNs at facilities in states that are not on this list and where the state nurses association is not participating. Currently it is also representing nurses in Utah even though Utah is a right to work state & the Utah State Nurses Association is not involved. So where theres a will, theres a way. But you cant join a labor union by yourself. So, if you have some like-minded RN co-workers who want to effect change, you can get more info at http://www.UANnurse.org

Check out the Organize section.

Good luck.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

Below is the list of current states that make up the UAN. Some of the states already in the UAN may suprise you:

Alabama State Nurses Association

Alaska Nurses Association

Colorado Nurses Association

District of Columbia

Florida Nurses Association

Georgia Nurses Association

Illinois Nurses Association

Iowa Nurses Association

Kansas State Nurses Association

Kentucky Nurses Association

Michigan Nurses Association

Minnesota Nurses Association

Missouri Nurses Association

Montana

Nebraska

New Jersey State Nurses Association

New York State Nurses Association

North Carolina Nurses Association

Ohio Nurses Association

Oregon Nurses Association

US Virgin Islands Nurses Association

Washington State Nurses Association

West Virginia Nurses Association

Wyoming Nurses Association

http://www.ana.org/dlwa/barg/index.htm

As you can see, nurses are unionizing with the UAN in right to work states and Southern states too. The UAN also has the capability to directly represent groups of RNs at facilities in states that are not on this list and where the state nurses association is not participating. Currently it is also representing nurses in Utah even though Utah is a right to work state & the Utah State Nurses Association is not involved. So where theres a will, theres a way. But you cant join a labor union by yourself. So, if you have some like-minded RN co-workers who want to effect change, you can get more info at http://www.UANnurse.org

Check out the Organize section.

Good luck.

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Originally posted by Hellllllo Nurse

Wish there were a way for me to join this union. I live in a "right to work" state.

There are no unions here at all.

Helllllo Nurse....I live in a "right to work" state too. At one of the hospitals (do not work there anymore ;-) ..... I previously worked at.... we nurses TRIED to organized a union. However, some of the admin/nurse managers took out ads in our local newspaper stating how "terrible" it would be to unionize. When, that didn't work....they started with intimidation, bullying, talking about how employees would get less of a raise/rights if under union etc... Anyways, when votes were cast & the ballots were counted....there seem to be a discrepancy....a re-count was held..and nurses voted again....to our dismay...the nurses who did not want a union...won.

Also, one of my neighbors is a nurse for the VA in the same state....they are union....and he is so grateful!

Jt....thanks again for those web-sites. I bookmarked them.

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Originally posted by Hellllllo Nurse

Wish there were a way for me to join this union. I live in a "right to work" state.

There are no unions here at all.

Helllllo Nurse....I live in a "right to work" state too. At one of the hospitals (do not work there anymore ;-) ..... I previously worked at.... we nurses TRIED to organized a union. However, some of the admin/nurse managers took out ads in our local newspaper stating how "terrible" it would be to unionize. When, that didn't work....they started with intimidation, bullying, talking about how employees would get less of a raise/rights if under union etc... Anyways, when votes were cast & the ballots were counted....there seem to be a discrepancy....a re-count was held..and nurses voted again....to our dismay...the nurses who did not want a union...won.

Also, one of my neighbors is a nurse for the VA in the same state....they are union....and he is so grateful!

Jt....thanks again for those web-sites. I bookmarked them.

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