With all the changes in healthcare, management keeps telling us they need to cut back. They have cut back on staffing, supplies, support staff, benefits, raises, etc. Nurses are not getting breaks. New documentation is overwhelming, but our workload has increased. If we say anything, we are told, "we are lucky to have a job."
Has anyone else been through this? There are rumors about a union coming in. If they do, does it help?
BUT, you took the time to post your comment in a UNION discussion, surely you can see why it would be construed as antiunion?
The blame for Detroit's downfall is shared by many: management, unions, city planners and the populace. Each had a part in the short-sightedness and greed that ultimately killed the golden goose that was Detroit.
Even if my post WERE patently anti-union, how would that make me a "malcontent"?
To some on these boards, anyone opposed to labor unions hates workers and cheers when management is abusive. Apparently if you think there may be other solutions than labor unions, you're equivalent to Simon LeGree and the owners of the Lowell textile mills in the late 1800s.
To some on these boards, anyone opposed to labor unions hates workers and cheers when management is abusive. Apparently if you think there may be other solutions than labor unions, you're equivalent to Simon LeGree and the owners of the Lowell textile mills in the late 1800s.
Being anti union without presenting a ear cut solution doesn't bode well; it's EXACTLY what these corporations and those with money and power want.
Greed and mismanagement from the top has NOTHING to do with a union; that occurs in non-union facilities as well; union can not be the scapegoat of people who are in charge that fall in love with having more money coming to them instead of the workers; in his country wages have been stagnant due to the anti union wave, and the allowance of corporations to circumvent the process in obese for them to have more money and freedoms, while the rest of is continue to bicker amongst ourselves, drink the "free market" kool-aid, instead of banding together and bust through the BS.
I think a union does benefit workers most of the time; I have had better income and benefits at a unionized hospital that don't allow RNs to be in the union (due to our ability to be leaders and management)-I was treated so much better vs a organization that is non-union; I have also worked somewhere when the union only benefitted the organization; unfortunately they union busted and I've seen more people dislike working for that organization.
I am welcoming my new position with a unionized health system, because the whole system benefits from a union.
I was having a discussion about the union with a coworker one night as we were standing outside on a smoke break (for him). He's mildly anti-union and I was trying to help him understand why I'm moderately pro-union.
We were standing in the shadow of our 15-story hospital, in the middle of our large medical campus... I pointed to the giant hospital, the new medical school building, the specialized treatment and research centers that surrounded us and said, "Otherwise, it's just me... against all of this... what chance do I have?"
I consider unions a necessary inefficiency in the corporate system that gives the workers some ability to influence their lot...
IMHO, the need or lack of need for a union follows an evolution. When there is no union, and power is totally in the hands of management, a union CAN be beneficial. For example, though I am moderately anti-union, I can see some benefits to a nurse's union.
But as they grow, unions tend to become so controlling that THEY begin to have most of the power. I speak as someone who has seen the collapse of both the auto industry and the steel industry, at the hands of powerful greedy unions pitted against powerful greedy management.
And meanwhile, the industry that pays all their wages dies on the vine.
I've gotten such amazing input from all of you. So, it's been awhile since my first post, and now it is actually happening. Our work environment has gone from bad to worse. The union that is in the works is UNAC. They say they are "nurse driven," with the intent to make our hospital a better place for all of us. They claim that wherever they are, they have improved the conditions and finances for both nurses and hospital administrations.
I am not sure what you mean, implying that I am a "malcontent". I was pointing out a basic truth, which seems to be all too often lost on many: That continued spending of more than one has will ultimately lead to economic collapse.
It is true for a single person, a family, a city, a company, a state, or a country.
Detroit is not the first entity to have learned this lesson, but it is certainly a huge entity currently in the news.
Simple disagreement, especially when facts are included, here often leads to being labeled a malcontent or worse. Join the party. If not so sad at times, it would be entertaining.
And yes, Detroit is but one very clear (but also sad) example of, "Until it's gone or used up, then what?"
I have worked in hospitals for the last 30 years as a non-hospital employee. All of my time was spent working with nurses and I had plenty of time to observe the culture of each site. My take-away lesson was that it is better for for the individual nurse to be working in a union hospital. However, all of these hospitals were represented by an SNA and all of the members were RN's. I don't think they were as aggressive as a non-nurse union, but it's one of the things I liked about it. The union nurses always got a break during the day and also got lunch (I was so jealous!). When you're in the business for the long haul, going home without the hunger headache is a very big deal.
Absolutely! The contracts we have earned have made fair and equitable wages, overtime, differentials, working conditions all improve. Without the contracts and the diligence of the nurses we would continue to have selective or no benefits. At a time when employers are working to increase revenues and decrease staffing it is more important than ever that we work to provide for the health and safety of all health care workers. Nurses are at the forefront of the battle. Profits have become the driving factors in healthcare. CEO's are making record bonus and wage packages while increasing the work loads on nurses. Without the unions they are free to continue this trend and more nurses are and will leave the profession. In 2014 it is more important than ever to grow our unions and maintain the advances nurses have made to provide safe and compassionate care.
morte, LPN, LVN
7,015 Posts
BUT, you took the time to post your comment in a UNION discussion, surely you can see why it would be construed as antiunion?