I'm sick of nursing unions!!!

firstyearstudent · Jul 1, 2006

I'm sorry you've gotten this kind of treatment from the union. But shouldn't you work to make your union more responsive to you and other nurses, as opposed to just giving up?

Long Term Care Columnist / Guide · Jul 1, 2006

I Pretty soon, we will all be working for minimum wage with no rights. And when this happens...you can all thank yourselves. You got yourselves in this position.

And to whom would you be referring?? :confused:

TazziRN, RN · Jul 1, 2006

Sorry you have poor union representation but please don't assume all unions are like that. A union is only as strong as its members and it is not MY fault if YOUR union isn't doing what it's supposed to.

zaggar · Jul 1, 2006

So, you have to pay union dues whether you are a "member" or not. Nice racket. Tony Soprano must be jealous.

You have to pay union dues if you want to work in your state. So a person who can speak for themselves needs to just move.

They have closed door meetings, about you, where you are not invited. Do they think you are 6 years old?

Yeah, this union thing sounds like just the thing. I've always been dependent on the kindness of strangers. :uhoh3:

IMustBeCrazy · Jul 1, 2006

You have a poor LOCAL union. Find out where the state/national headquarters of this union is and start writing LOTS of grievance letters. Your local union is only poor because they haven't had to answer to higher powers. The state/national unions have a vested interest in keeping you unionized, you can bet the bigwigs aren't going to be happy about hearing about the poor local representation track record, which could cost them business at that hospital.

Another thought would be to get some information about a competing union and leave it in a couple highly trafficked staff places. I'm willing to bet that would get their attention.

CHATSDALE · Jul 1, 2006

IF you think that unions suck you should try and live in a state with 'right-to-work' laws...you have no recourse at all

ortess1971 · Jul 1, 2006

Part of the problem is a certain amount of "prissiness" on the part of some nurses. For example, one of the hospitals around here has the Teamsters-and they have a very good situation for the nurses. My last hospital, the Teamsters were trying to get in there and some of the nurses felt that the Teamsters weren't "professional" enough so they ended up with a weak and ineffective union.

lorster · Jul 1, 2006

I'm sorry you've gotten this kind of treatment from the union. But shouldn't you work to make your union more responsive to you and other nurses, as opposed to just giving up?

We had a great union rep. She was a cracker jack NICU nurse and those are hard to come by here. She was quick and attended to matters. The hospital didn't cross her. Somehow, she got fired. (Good union representation huh?) Now, none of the union reps want to speak up. This is a one hospital town with the next hospital being 140 miles away. There is no competition. The hospital just pulls one thing after another. To have a grievance meeting without the person filing the grievance in attendance, is against our contract. I expect this behavior from our management, not from my fellow union members. I called the state union and left a message. I am hard core union and work by my contract. But to have union reps sit in meetings and take what the hospital has to dish out and not fight for our contract is beyond me. The hospital knows that they can get away with one violation after another. Most of the older nurses just say..I'm tired of fighting and the new nurses coming in are so overwhelmed by this profession that they are doing what they need to to survive their first couple of years. I can't do this alone. I give up.

lorster · Jul 1, 2006

You have a poor LOCAL union. Find out where the state/national headquarters of this union is and start writing LOTS of grievance letters. Your local union is only poor because they haven't had to answer to higher powers. The state/national unions have a vested interest in keeping you unionized, you can bet the bigwigs aren't going to be happy about hearing about the poor local representation track record, which could cost them business at that hospital.
Another thought would be to get some information about a competing union and leave it in a couple highly trafficked staff places. I'm willing to bet that would get their attention.

I had no idea that I could join another union. How does that work? Is there a list of unions that I could become a member of? I will check into this. Thank you.

TazziRN, RN · Jul 1, 2006

I had no idea that I could join another union. How does that work? Is there a list of unions that I could become a member of? I will check into this. Thank you.

You can't choose which union to join unless your facility has contracts with more than one (unlikely) but you CAN initiate a change!

lorster · Jul 1, 2006

You can't choose which union to join unless your facility has contracts with more than one (unlikely) but you CAN initiate a change!

The problem is...I don't think it matters what union I am in. None of the nurses at this hospital really want to make it strong. Too many just do not care. Some of them question why we even have a union. The hospital has tried to break this union for years and for years the union held strong. But we have lots of young new grads and many new nurses that simply do not believe that unions are effective so they do not see a need to support it. Many are irritated that they have to pay union dues. They do not remember the days when conditions were so bad that we went on strike. I am seeing some of those poor conditions once again surface and it is sad. I guess I'll just sit back and watch the place implode.