If no union in right-to-work state, then what?

[callmecrazyRN]

I live and work in Louisiana. Judging by our southern morals and being "set in our ways", we will probably never get a union or at least any time soon. Any suggestions to help increase NURSE safety, a safer nurse/patient ratio, nursing wages (baseline, we make $20/hr), and generally increase nurse well-being? REALLY wanting to make changes in my establishment....

[callmecrazyRN]

I've supported nurses on strike at other hospitals. Our union has a patient protection task force led by "picket captains", who are elected RN leaders. The DON and all management nurses are given their cell numbers before the strike in a formal letter and e-mail.

At any time a manager can request one or more nurses to leave the picket line and come in to care for patients. That does not count as crossing the line.

I've not been there when it happened, but have heard about replacement nurses who informed management that they were not competent for a specific machine or procedure so a striking nurse came in to care for the patient.

I friend of mine did Strike nursing for a week or so. She came back home with $8,000 after taxes were taken out. I would've gone with her if I hadn't been accepted into my dream nursing field (psych) and met my boyfriend, now husband.

[herring_RN, ASN, BSN]

Quote from anonymurse

There ARE unions for nurses in LA--at the VAMCs in Shreveport, Alexandria, and NO.

Toothless tigers. Their contract forbids them from striking.

Rep. Takano, Sen. Brown Introduce Bill to Help VA Attract and Retain Talented Medical Professionals

Washington, D.C. – Today, Rep. Mark Takano (D-Calif.) and Senator Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) introduced the VA Employee Fairness Act to support the goal of building a talented workforce to care for America's veterans. The bill would create a better environment for attracting and retaining physicians, nurses, and other healthcare workers by restoring collective bargaining rights to medical professionals at the Department of Veterans Affairs.

While VA employees have had collectively bargain rights since 1991, health care providers are exempted from collective bargaining on matters of professional conduct or competence, peer-review, or changes to employee compensation. As a result, they are prevented from raising grievances about staffing shortages that undermine patient care or negotiating for competitive pay that will attract health care workers to the VA. The VA Employee Fairness Act removes this exemption, and grants front line health care providers their full collective bargaining rights...

... Registered nurses are on the front lines of patient care for our nation's veterans – in fact, they serve as the first line of defense for patients in the V.A.,” said Jean Ross, RN, Co-President of National Nurses United. Without full collective bargaining rights, V.A. nurses have been limited in their ability to speak out about working conditions that impact the quality and safety of patient care, such as safe staffing.

The restoration of their full collective bargaining rights is necessary for registered nurses to serve as effective advocates for their patients,”...

Press | Press Releases | Newsroom | U.S. Congressman Mark Takano of California's 41st District

[hgraves64]

I too lived and worked in Louisiana as a RN for both magnet and non-magnet hospitals. I was tired of being under-paid and over-worked. The worst was when I was a Charge Nurse on a Med-Surg floor that also had to care for six of my own patients during my shift. I've left and come to California, and working here is like Heaven in comparison! Better wages, sensible staffing, assignments with thoughtful acuity. Come to the Best/West Coast as soon as you can!