Strike Vote

MellowOne · Jul 5, 2004

Well, I personally would like to know more about the situation before I would support a strike. While it is sometimes necessary when a hospital administration is filled with clueless idiots, other times it is not.

I went to nursing school at a union hospital. I resolved then that I would never work at a union hospital.

A strike is a difficult situation for all. It can strain relationships, compromise patient care, and create many ill feelings that are long-lasting. My hope is that you can come to a quick resolution so that a strike is not necessary.

Be well...

The Mellow One

Dixiedi · Jul 5, 2004

Dump the union. They used to be useful but now a days there are so many government regulations that they are totally worthless.

You speak of wages as being a major hurdle. Where do you suppose the hospital is to get the funds to provide the income you are asking for?

You can increase your imcome simply by getting rid of the union dues!

pickledpepperRN · Jul 5, 2004

I have never been on strike. We did have an informational picket. The management was replacing RNs with people who had been in dietary the week before, proposing the contract give them the right to eliminate health insurance for RNs, and finally just walked out on us.

The nurses with leaflets with direct quotes from management distributinh these to visitors, doctors, and other employees got the back to the table. We got the 'promises' made before the vote into the contract as well as some patient protections.

Now the committee they finally agreed on is forcing them to comply with the law by the contract requirement for them to respond to our recommendations in writing. They won't put in writing (or hospital policy) anything illegal. Then we hold them to their written promise.

I know nurses who went on strike in the early 1990s and still lost a lot in terms of holiday pay. They are still suffering from it and afraid to be very assertive.

Some nurses are strong and the nursing management is committed to quality care so informed education has kepr the quality high.

Another friend tols of a strike at her hospital when they got a great contract. The nurses who crossed the picket line and didn't say, "I'm sorry." later are shunned by some.

I don't agree with that. Each person must do what he or she feels is right. It is just sad that an action 20 years ago caused a nurse to be left out of party invitations.

Here in Los Angeles nurses where i work registry went on strike so new hires would not get more than long term employees. Almost all the nurses felt it an insult to long term nurses. They were and are proud of their action, a short limited strike. Now wages are increased after working at that hospital for either 20 or 25 years. Sorry I forget which.

It helped patient care because most of the senior nurses planned to quit if that disrespect was allowed.

I doubt any group of nurses would strike ONLY for money. A few, but not enough to prevail.

Just my experience, opinion, and second hand stories. Both negative and positive.

pickledpepperRN · Jul 6, 2004

My hope is that you can come to a quick resolution so that a strike is not necessary.
The Mellow One

I chose the part I can agree with 100%!

Are you the Mercy Hospital where the nurses voted 100% for the new contract?

husker-nurse, LPN, LVN · Jul 6, 2004

I chose the part I can agree with 100%!
Are you the Mercy Hospital where the nurses voted 100% for the new contract?

That would be us (there was one who voted for the strike, musta had a LOT of PDO's saved......) :rotfl: and, just so you know, I was prepared to be out for the duration. I am willing to sacrifice STILL to make things a little better for all. I do not believe that unions have had their day. This is not a conglomerate (sp?) that will take care of us unless we take care of ourselves!

movealong · Jul 7, 2004

When a strike vote was passed at one place I worked, I got prepared. Actually I starting getting ready a couple months before it went to vote ( we all knew when our contract was coming up). By ready, I mean I went ahead and got signed up with an outside agency, took their test and so was ready for work with them in case we actually went out on a strike.

I made sure I had paid bills I knew were coming up around the same time: car insurance, stuff like that. I didn't want a big bill staring me in the face if I was out on strike.

But once we authorized a strike ( the strike vote passed) management suddenly offerred an acceptable contract and so we never had to go out.

edited to note: when I meant signing up at an agency, I meant to work at other hospitals. I would never cross a picket line.

Sarah, RNBScN · Jul 7, 2004

Hi

Just remember not to give up anything you already have...that is taking steps back. Be realistic and stay positive.

You have my support. We have been without a contract since March 2004.

Very best,

Sarah

CHATSDALE · Jul 7, 2004

good luck in your endeavors...so many times nurses do not hang together and they are uses at the whims of the powers that be...one nurse cannot accomplish very much..but if you all determine what is needed you can get something in writing that they will be obliged to adher to...again good luck you have my respect

Groovydogg · Jul 8, 2004

Dump the union. They used to be useful but now a days there are so many government regulations that they are totally worthless.
You speak of wages as being a major hurdle. Where do you suppose the hospital is to get the funds to provide the income you are asking for?
You can increase your imcome simply by getting rid of the union dues!

When unions first come into being they were sorely needed. But now they (for the most part) are very corrupt and are a breeding ground for laziness, yes i have worked in union hospitals, and it was disgusting, BUT they were state unions and the nurses were lumped in with other laborers. I fully support nurses unions, and 9 times out of 10 I fully support nurse strikes.

If nurse unions are ever to succede, they can not become the haven of lazy slobs!!!!

For the most part (and not counting nurse unions) I am very anti union because they are greedy, self serving, anti productivity. Their philosophy is that "NOTHING is merit based, only seniority based". They foster a culture of sloth and are the protectorate of the un-willing to work. the stories I could tell you about my brother in law who works for Verizon (in NYC) would make your blood boil. he says it is so bad he is embarassed, but can do nothing about it because the only thing he can do to get fired (and I mean the absolute only thing) is bad mouth the union.

Unions are a major reason the jobs are leaving this country. They are costing the companies so much money, not in wages but in lost productivity. think about it.

TMnurse · Jul 8, 2004

2 things- My hospital recently had a strike vote which we ratified... what happens next is everyone goes back to the table to see if you can work it out. Our hospital gave us nearly everything we wanted. It was great and many of us feared the strike... however, if we said yes to our first contract we'd actually be making less than before. 2nd-the person just ahead of me saying that all "non nursing unions" are for lazy people is simply foolish. I really don't even want to lay down any points as to why... but the first striking point is this statement is made be a person who was happy a union fought for there better wages (hypocritical)!!! Oh well, I guess if you are in the union (only nurses union mind you) then it's a good thing... but if your not then you lazy. I am originally from Detroit where the UAW is very strong. Don't let corporate media posion your mind that union people are lazy. You can find plenty of lazy people everywhere (non union). Let's think about what the upper end of company execs make 10s of millions in the auto industry we are not just talking about 1 or 2 dudes. There are 100s of "suits" making ridiculous amounts (and that's fine with me). However, the unions collectively bargin for a fair wage (for the working Americans) and unions ask what they KNOW companies CAN afford. Bottomline... without unions--- anybody who is not either a federal employee or part of management would probably make about half what they do right now. Be thankful for the union-- think about--my hospital is union-- this year we raised the bar for what nurses should get paid in Chicago-- now even the nonunion hospitals have to follow suit or they will lose people. Think about again.

Groovydogg · Jul 8, 2004

...... 2nd-the person just ahead of me saying that all "non nursing unions" are for lazy people is simply foolish. I really don't even want to lay down any points as to why... but the first striking point is this statement is made be a person who was happy a union fought for there better wages (hypocritical)!!! Oh well, I guess if you are in the union (only nurses union mind you) then it's a good thing... but if your not then you lazy. I am originally from Detroit where the UAW is very strong. Don't let corporate media posion your mind that union people are lazy. You can find plenty of lazy people ......

Please try to read my post. 1. I did not knock all unions, just most of them. 2. I am not knocking the unions bargining for pay, I am knocking the fact that they will protect any member regardless of the circumstance. I worked in a union hosp where employees were lazy, abusive to patients, stole from patients, etc. and they COULD NOT be fired, so as a result they were shuffled from dept to dept until they retired and collected retirement. I was TOLD to work slower, and when I complained of employees smoking in patient bathrooms, I was told to shut up. Unions (FOR THE MOST PART) are against merit based raises. They want the slowest person to earn as much as the fastest. you can not argue this. This is true for the majority of unions (at least the non nurse unions).

Funny you bring up the UAW, when Detroit started producing crappy cars the Japanese took over. Along with the desiging, it was also the WORKMANSHIP that led to the problems. I aldo seem to remember that when Regan slapped tariffs on the imports, the first thing the UAW did was demand higher wages and drove the cost of the cars up to match the imports.

Yes there are lazy people in all walks of life, but in the real world, lazy people get fired, this is not the case in the union shop. Had I been able to negotiate my own wage, and compared to the union slackers, I would have been earning alot more.

RNIAM, BSN, RN · Jul 8, 2004

Good luck to you and I hope this is settled soon and you'll be back on the job before you know it!