Descrimination: A full hot meal or soup and a sandwich

[Truth66]

Just when I thought our management couldn't get any more pathetic. Well, they have pushed the envelope even further.

At the begining of December the dietary manager decided (without notice) that the meal times during the day were going to change. Staff were not going to be served a full hot meal until after 12:30 pm, after the residents have all eaten their lunch. However, there are two categories of workers that usually have their lunch earlier which is 10:45 am and 11:15 am. They are the Practical Nurses and the Care Aides. For these workers they will only be entitled to have hot soup and a sandwich.

Well this didn't sit too well with these workers. So they decided on their own to change their lunch times in order for them to have the same full hot meal options that the rest of the workers were having in the building. Well the Director of Nursing got wind of this and she was not impressed. She ordered the Practical Nurses and the Care Aides to go back to their previous meal times and any change in staff meal times must go through proper channels and put to a vote with the union.

I have since filed a descrimination grievance and nothing will be looked into until after the first week of January. However, with this particular union's lousy track record of not wanting to hold the employer accountable on anything, I'm not holding my breath. So for over a month the Practical Nurses and the Care Aides will be served the equivalant of a soup kitchen at lunch time, even though their shift starts the same time as other departments (including the R.N.'s) in the building and will be treated as second class health care workers. This has created enourmous amounts of unnecesary tenstion through out the building.

[Atheos]

if they are upset, it needs to be addressed-silly or not. good places to work consider their employees, bad do not. "feelings" can festor and are part of what motivates people.

absolutely right.

however, seeing as this is a 'major' concern, we can infer that this is a good place.

if it were a bad place then i seriously doubt this concern would even be on their radar.

this is a mountain out a molehill...

[Fiona59]

Did anyone read Jan's post, or the comments by the Canadians on this Canadian issue? We run healthcare very differently up here. The CEO of my health authority rarely sets foot out of the ivory tower downtown, let alone grace the halls of my hospital.

[withasmilelpn]

Absolutely right.

However, seeing as this is a 'MAJOR' concern, we can infer that this IS a good place.

If it were a bad place then I seriously doubt this concern would even be on their radar.

This is a mountain out a molehill...

It is all a house of cards. One iffy decision and people will tend to magnify things out of proportion that follow. I just think it is human nature. And who knows, maybe that isn't the only thing? I know that all the places I've worked have had issues similar to other threads on this board. I don't always post everything that bugs me, even if it is a MAJOR issue to ME. I would be interested to hear if the OP does think it is good place to work or not.

[Truth66]

With regards to the definition of Discrimination. Like Harassment there are many different meanings. So check out

http://dictionary.reference.com

The Noun states "unfair treatment of a person or group on the basis of prejudice."

With regards to this issue being the only thing that my co-workers and I have to complain about. With out exageration, I could litterally write a book with regards to the high levels of neglegence and incompetance that the nurse managers and administrator have exhibited over the past 9 years. In 12 1/2 years I've worked with several different managers. I can safely say that a manager can make or break any organization.

The nurse managers that we had in the late 90's were well respected and they treated their staff fairly and with respect. In fact when they were around, the levels of overtime were next to nothing. We only saw overtime during Outbreaks and the odd time during the summer. With these current managers of how they routinely treat the staff like garbage, our facility was allegedly the third highest in the entire province with regards to overtime. We had one staff member alone who made over $20,000.00 in overtime alone two years in a row. A few days ago we were told that overtime for our facility was over $100,000.00 last year. Staff will all state that it's because the staff are fed up and never think twice about calling in to book off of work.

This meal issue, is yet just another example of pathetic nurse managers. If staff are treated with respect, staff will in turn bend over backwards to help their employer.

[Magsulfate, BSN, RN]

If anything the truth is everybody better belt themselves in, the economy is terrible and personally I think this is ridiculous....you have jobs! If your facility is in the Northeast, you won't have to worry....there are so many new nurses without jobs, there won't be any CNA jobs anywhere. As for the statement about job cuts, I have no doubt they will be following. We have lost our Baylor program, travel nurses as of this month, and no more agency fill ins. I fully expect money to be next. Our cafeteria has raised prices, and shortened their hours. AND YES, WE ARE UNION.

.

Oh and I do have brass, just not balls:rolleyes:.

Where are you? I am holding my breath here in Houston, so far we haven't seen the economic hardships that other parts of the country have. There are still many jobs available here, in healthcare and other areas. Of course we have a large population of illegal immigrants to fill some of those jobs, but there are still lots of jobs in the classifieds.

Anyway, to the economic point, maybe dietary had to cut back. SO, how will they accomidate this? If they can't do the full lunch for the extended hours that are necessary, then what? Everyone go to break at once? Maybe the lpn's and cna's can go to lunch when they tried to before? I wonder why the DON made them go back to the earlier schedule....

I know that this topic has been discussed at length but I just don't understand, if it was working out, then why did the DON order them to go back to the 10:30? Is it a power trip thing??

[tnrose]

Just to be clear, and maybe clear up some of the other post, are your meals free or are you expected to pay for them? I think that makes a big difference.

[just_cause, BSN, RN]

..... as long as they don't 'descriminate' for poor spelling.

[tnrose]

who said it was free?

[tnrose]

was that really necessary? I don't think she was asking for a spell checker

[just_cause, BSN, RN]

As necessary as you asking if my anecdotal comment was necessary.

Open forum with no harm intended, if the humor was offensive to you, then I apologize.

v/r

[MAISY, RN-ER, BSN, RN]

Where are you? I am holding my breath here in Houston, so far we haven't seen the economic hardships that other parts of the country have. There are still many jobs available here, in healthcare and other areas. Of course we have a large population of illegal immigrants to fill some of those jobs, but there are still lots of jobs in the classifieds.

Anyway, to the economic point, maybe dietary had to cut back. SO, how will they accomidate this? If they can't do the full lunch for the extended hours that are necessary, then what? Everyone go to break at once? Maybe the lpn's and cna's can go to lunch when they tried to before? I wonder why the DON made them go back to the earlier schedule....

I know that this topic has been discussed at length but I just don't understand, if it was working out, then why did the DON order them to go back to the 10:30? Is it a power trip thing??

Haven't been on as it seems this has been beaten to death.....I am in NJ, I am not worried about my job; however NJ has closed many hospitals leaving a large pool of nurses unemployed. Additionally, there have been layoffs in many facilities also contributing to unemployed nurses. While other parts of the country may still be looking for nurses, NJ has a plethora of the unemployed and soon to be newly graduated. As the OP is Canadian they may not share our current problems, therefore my advice although pertinent to common sense, may not be on the mark for them. Then again....who knows?

Maisy

[Mr Ian]

Stanley (et al),

Your last post laid out the 'other side' of the debate well - and that's what this has become; a debate of two poles.

Kohlberg suggested there are no explicit right or wrongs - just different levels of moral reasoning by which we determine our position. Even when 'facts' are in play - the context of those facts is of more importance than the fact itself. (eg killing someone is wrong - unless you're a soldier and it's your duty - fact remains that someone is dead - but it is contextually permitted) -

NB: Before I go on, I'm not comparing combat warfare to soup and sandwiches - I'm demonstrating a principle - please, no one jump down my throat complaining about the comparison - otherwise you'll prove you didn't read what I wrote and I take no responsibility for anyone making themselves look ignorant.

So what we're debating is the morality of the action - not the action itself.

So I repost your post:

1. The agreement states that ALL employees have the opportunity to buy lunch.

2. There is not REALLY any discrimination of lower echelon employees.

3. Is this REALLY a valid complaint?

4. Complaints of a caste system.

5. Broken contract???

1. Is it fair that one group misses out on an agreed perk - irrespective of which group - simply because their breaks are at the wrong time? Especially when they seem willing and able to change their break times to accommodate the Dietary Manager's needs.

2. Lower echelons was not my phrase and I agree there are others in the food chain (pun intended). However, the fact that a 'lower order' group has had these restrictions imposed on them, without consultation and without fair warning is a valid and typical occurrence. Equally, Senior Managers would highly likely not accept their company cars being taken off them after it was an agreed perk of the position.

3. Yes. See above.

4. As in 2 - A similar move on more senior staff would not be conducted is such an arrogant manner.

5. Workplace agreements are agreements. If management wish to change them then there is due process to follow and simply making changes for the beneficence of the organisation by those with the authority to make those changes does not abrogate a moral duty to those employees to honour what was already agreed.

So on one hand - yes, I agree the issue is comparatively small fry to, say, Global Warming or Terrorism - but to those it effects directly, it is important. It's all relative to what we have or don't have and what it means to us.

"One death is a tragedy, millions are just statistics" Stalin

What differs here is how some of nurses define "us".

Now I may be raising Communism principles with the wrong crowd here - but the principle of 'Comraderie' is clearly lacking amongst some nurses who imply - "It's not like it's a real issue"

I wonder why these same nurses seem to have such bigger problems - like economy; staffing; no breaks; no meals; yet seem to have no idea how their working conditions got into such a state that they're in.

Probably because when someone gave them soup and everyone else got a full meal - the nurses said nothing.

When the Nazis came for the communists,

I remained silent;

I was not a communist.

When they locked up the social democrats,

I remained silent;

I was not a social democrat.

When they came for the trade unionists,

I did not speak out;

I was not a trade unionist.

When they came for the Jews,

I remained silent;

I wasn't a Jew.

When they took the hot meals off the CNA & PN-s in an LTC centre in Canada and gave them soup and sammies,

I wasn't just silent - but I told them they were being petty and they should get real.

I wasn't getting hot meals or even a break.

When they came for me,

there was no one left to speak out.

.. and I still haven't had my lunch break.

[Adapted from Niemöller, 1946]

"First they came..." is a poem attributed to Pastor Martin Niemöller (1892-1984) about the inactivity of German intellectuals following the Nazi rise to power and the purging of their chosen targets, group after group.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_they_came...