Tentative agreement diminishes threat of strike by Catholic Health West nurses

"The labor gap has been a crucial issue for both sides during negotiations.
Otherwise, Mercy and CNA officials did agree on several significant points,
including a first-time health care program for retirees and additional pay
ranging from $80 to $180 per shift for nurses who work extra hours to
alleviate shortages."

> Tentative agreement diminishes threat of strike by nurses
>
> <http://www.sacbee.com/ib/news/ib_news03_20010626.html>
>
> By Cathleen Ferraro
> Bee Staff Writer
> (Published June 26, 2001)
>
> Thousands of Northern California registered nurses ready to walk off their
> hospital jobs Wednesday have scrapped those plans after their union and
> employer came to a tentative contract agreement.
> The California Nurses Association and Catholic Healthcare West, parent of
> the Sacramento-area Mercy units and Woodland Healthcare, reached a proposed
> two-year accord early Saturday morning that, so far, is keeping nurses on
> the job.
> Locally, the one-day strike was scheduled to hit Mercy General, Mercy San
> Juan Medical Center, Mercy Folsom, Methodist Hospital and Woodland
> Healthcare, involving almost 1,700 RNs.
> St. Mary's Medical Center and St. Francis Memorial in San Francisco,
> Dominican Hospital in Gilroy {actually in Santa Cruz--ed.] and Seton
> Medical Center in Daly City were targeted for walkouts, too. About 1,400
> union RNs were poised to strike in the Bay Area.
> Instead, bargaining units for both sides said RNs will cast ballots
> Wednesday, Thursday and Friday on the tentative pact. Pivotal in the vote
> will be the fact that the union didn't fully agree to CHW's wage proposal,
> a 7.5 percent increase in the first year and a 4 percent hike in the second.
> "We're not saying 'no' and we're not saying 'yes,' " said Don Nielsen,
> chief negotiator for CNA. "It's a tossup for us, and we're asking the
> nurses to tell us what they want."
> Already, Mercy gave all of its RNs in Sacramento an interim pay increase of
> 6 percent in May. That 6 percent would be part of the 7.5 percent proposed
> in the contract.
> Additionally, Mercy and CNA agreed that all RNs with five to 20 years of
> experience at Mercy will be eligible for extra pay because of their long
> tenure.
> Under the terms of the tentative contract, compensation will depend on
> their current pay compared to salary benchmarks.
> "We believe about 400 nurses will receive additional wage increases on top
> of the contract proposal," estimated Jill Dryer, spokeswoman for CHW in
> Sacramento. "With these increases, our pay rate will be competitive within
> the area's health care market."
> Nationwide, a shortage of nurses is forcing hospitals to come up with
> better ways to recruit and retain qualified people.
> The labor gap has been a crucial issue for both sides during negotiations.
> Otherwise, Mercy and CNA officials did agree on several significant points,
> including a first-time health care program for retirees and additional pay
> ranging from $80 to $180 per shift for nurses who work extra hours to
> alleviate shortages.
> Meanwhile, CNA continued to bargain Monday over nurses' wages and
> conditions at Woodland Healthcare. Negotiators for Woodland did not meet
> Friday when the union and officials for Sacramento Mercy hospitals were
> bargaining.
> Catholic Healthcare West is one of the biggest health care systems in the
> western United States. It operates 47 hospitals and five medical practice
> groups in California, Arizona and Nevada. The company also oversees care
> for 300,000 patients and employs about 40,000 people.
> -------
> The Bee's Cathleen Ferraro can be reached at (916)321-1043 or
> cferraro@sacbee.com.
>
>