Possible Strike at my Assignment Site

[PacoUSA, BSN, RN]

So I was just contacted by someone at my agency who called to find out if I was going to be available to continue working if there is a strike next month. This was a surprise to hear because I had no clue that my hospital's nurses were even considering this. I am under contract until mid January but just agreed to extend through end of March as well. If I were to continue working, I was told there would be a higher premium pay but as of now there is no set dollar amount to quote, not until things become more certain that they will go that route.

My initial reaction of course is to continue working through the strike because I need to continue working for myself (irrespective of increased premium pay) because I won't get paid if I join the strike obviously. However, I am understanding towards my fellow nurses who want to strike as I have been staff before at another hospital with bad pay and bad working conditions (though I dare say, my current hospital is better off than where I used to be ... and it behooves me why union nurses never considered strikes there). But at the same time, I am not a member of their union nor do I get their benefits as a traveler, so I don't think I'm really affected, correct?

All so confusing right now, and even more so given that this is all tentative and news for me as no one had talked about this at work.

Any advice from people that have been in this situation?

[icuRNmaggie, BSN, RN]

I have never been in that situation but if I were, I would honor my current contract for financial reasons.

I would hold off on agreeing to an extension until I knew how it was all going to play out.

It would really be uncomfortable for me to be voluntarily on the wrong side of a picket line and I would try to line up a contract at another facility for end of January to March.

[NedRN]

I've never been in that situation before, but I've considered what I would do and I have talked to others in that situation. Everyone may have a different solution that works for them, but here are some of my thoughts. First find out whether this is an open ended strike or just a couple days. I think what I would do would be dramatically different. One, two, or even five day strikes are just negotiating tactics and I doubt staff nurses would object to a current traveler working straight through. Nevertheless, you are crossing a picket line, increased workload, and working side by side with strike workers making perhaps 50% more. So if you do decide to work, you should be paid accordingly, if not more than the strike workers as obviously you will be a resource for them.

The moral questions are more pronounced if this is a "real" strike (rather rare). You are affected by nurse unions even if you don't belong to them. Their fights raise all boats for nurses and replacing them works against them. Pay for travelers in union heavy areas also is higher. Without unions in this country, we would not have most of the things we take for granted, minimum wage, child labor laws, 40 hour work weeks, overtime, and breaks. There is no doubt that union heavy states pay far more for nurses than non-union states, in fact more than double just on hourly pay. Union jobs often have mandated ratios (California unions pushed for a state-wide law for all hospitals), and patient care needs (like acuity) written into their contracts.

The answer for you is personal and should be thought out. It can be tough to turn down the good pay, but I would consider the larger picture. Unless you become a strike chaser, working just one is likely to be an unnoticeable blip in your annual income.

I could go on, but really, most planned strikes cancel. So I wouldn't worry about this issue at all until it becomes more real. It is usually not real until it hits the local newspaper. But you can get the facts first hand from the union nurses you work with - which will also allow you to learn what their issues are and how important they are. Often it is less about money directly than good patient care (which usually requires better staffing).