Anyone Staffed Strikes?

KyRNBSN · Apr 9, 2001

I'm not powerless, I work, regularly, Pay my bills, care for my family, and enjoy short term assignments and don't really give a rat's patoot about your opinion, as it is just that, an opinion. As for advertising.. I was not advertising for a specific company, not even trying to get a referral fee or I would have posted that information.. Just simply letting those who are interested know about the upcoming events.. If you want to continue to bash my posting, go right ahead.. I refuse to lock horns with those people who disagree with my choice of work. Lot's of people including myself, disagree with abortions or other types of medical realted fields that nurses can work in, yet I do not bash those who choose to work there.. To each their own.. So post away.. Won't stop me from working, won't change my mind.. and it won't ruffle my feathers..

Have a Good day!

Originally posted by Level2Trauma:
As long as there are nurses like you, the profession will never progress to where we want it to be. We will not progress by cutting each others throats. No, I am not in a union but I certainly respect those that are and who have the guts to fight for better working conditions. 2.6 million nurses and we are still powerless. I WONDER WHY!!!

P.S. bshort, I thought we weren't allowed to advertise. There appears to be a lot of advertising about a certain staffing company!!!

jamistlc · May 10, 2001

Greetings All Nurses,

I see this as a very contoversal and situtional question for the board. I can see both POV and and see where given the need I could be on either side. No as a person seeking lucrative traveling assignments I see that working a strike can fit the bill. As a nurse who has worked in the field for 11 years I see the other side of the coin too. The pt to staff ratios are usually on of the key barriers to a resolution of a strike along with low pay/benefits. So my point here is it is an individuals opinion and right to be on either side at the right place and time. For now you are more likely to find me crossing the line!

One of the rationales for this would be that the ANA or the state satellite of the ANA would be the representive for the Nurses, I as a LPN could care less about what they are doing given they exclude me and would prefer to abolish me and my kind of nurse from the profession. In other words they do not represent me so why should I support their actions?

peace,

Jami

ornurse2001 · May 20, 2001

I am a non-union RN.I have not yet staffed a strike, and I am undecided on wether I would or wouldn't.There are no nursing unions that I am aware of anywhere near where I live.I do have a question.I understand from what I have read on BB posts that Nurses give hospitals a 10 day notice before striking, etc.However, I have recently become aware of several nursing homes that are striking.I must admit, that this is very disturbing to me.First of all, these patients shouldn't be moved even if they could be for the purpose of a strike.This is their home.Many of these elderly people are confused enough without disturbing their daily routine and uprooting them from their home and madating them against their will to live elsewhere because the Nursing staff is unhappy with work conditions.If the Nursing home situation is poor for the patients, and that is the motivating factor in the nurses move to strike, then state inspection agencies should instead be notified as they are held to different laws, standards, and inspection practices than most hospitals.There is an ethical obligation to these old people-and in this case, I would say that "scabs" ; if you want to call them that, are a necessary commodity.

ornurse2001 · May 20, 2001

OK-Got carried away and didn't ask my question....When nursing home nursing staff decide to strike, what measures are taken to ensure that the residents are safe and cared for ???I have noted that the agencies that staff strikes are advertising for RN,LPN and CNA positions-so, guess laundry,housekeeping,kitchen staff and administration - whomever is left in the facility are going to assume the resident care duties???.....I really would like to know.I have taken care of my husband's 95 yr. old grandmother at home for 2 years and I am going to put her in a nursing home in July due to her deteriorating mental status.It is difficult enough worrying about wether or not the care your family member will recieve is adequate without the threat of all the nursing staff walking out.It is also extrememly difficult to navigate the medicaid/medicare system when you are forced to move an elderly person from state to state , especially if there is an asset(ie:a residence)involved.So, if there is a large number of nursing homes in one state that are going on strike,what are the resident's(or more often the families of the residents)to do?

fergus51 · May 21, 2001

Oh ORnurse, I feel for you. I don't think there is an easy answer. Here we have to maintain essential services levels of staffing so the old folks wouldn't just be booted out onto the streets. I think the problem with geriatrics is that they are sometimes the worst off regarding staffing ratios and such. I don't think one RN should be responsible for giving meds and doing tx on 30 patients. Let's face it the LPNs and CNAs are the ones doing most of the patient care in a lot of these places anyways.

I think the point is nurses aren't striking for the fun of it. They are striking because they're at the end of their ropes and nothing else has worked. If hospitals were about providing quality care rather than making a buck they wouldn't be such awful places.

ornurse2001 · May 23, 2001

Thanks for your reply fergus51-guess it's a question nobody can really answer.

ruthiebaby88 · Aug 7, 2006

I'm with nurseyperson, although I haven't worked a strike - it doesn't sound like much fun - I'm sure the hospitals must be pretty disorganized! I do agree that SOMEONE has got to take care of the patients. I mean how awful would it be to be in hospitalized at the time of a nursing strike! The first thing I would try to do as a patient is ask to go to a different hospital! But not all patients would have the ability to make that decision.

When stubborn hospitals force nurses to strike they have to pay a mint to get the strike nurses to come in - so the strikes still hurt the hospital in the pocketbook, where they will feel it. I don't think it's necessary to hurt the patients as well. The hospitals also damage their image in the eyes of the community. They also may cancel scheduled surgeries, transfer patients to other facilities, and may refuse nonurgent admissions during this time. They lose a lot of money.

Seems like the California nurse's union has made a great impact on nursing in that state - even though their strikes are staffed by 'scabs' as you would call them.

I don't think you can compare a nursing strike to a strike of say... coal miner's - they are just two different industries - and with nurses I really don't think the term 'scab' applies. Any nurse who would treat a strike worker with anything other than professional coutesy needs to examine their behavior. Are they just doing it in response to something they learned about 'scabs' in their history book or have they really thought it out? Would they do the same thing if their mother was a patient in that hospital?

ZASHAGALKA, RN · Aug 7, 2006

This is a 5-6 yr old thread. Many of the voices from this thread might not still be around or their interests might not gravitate to this thread, today.

But nursing IS different. At other jobs, there are tons of non-union workers willing and able to 'steal' a union worker's job for less money. Scabs undermine a strike by allowing management to continue without a hitch or cost.

There are no scabs in nursing. Crossing the line costs hospitals far more than any other thing a union could hope to happen.

The more nurses they can recruit in this fashion, the closer they can come to operating 'normal'. The needs of the community would normally demand that they spend with reckless abandon to do just that.

Spending with reckless abandon on temp workers has a way of encouraging appreciation for your own staff.

Like most strikes: money is the bottom line. Even safety issues come down to what they cost. Unions should be thrilled about the concept of hospitals bleeding money in this fashion.

Think about it this way: if I could fine you 100/day AND dis your reputation in order to get you to pony up 1000, how many days could you hold out? Unions should be ENCOURAGING this forced 'fine'. THAT will bring them to the table far faster than a few media stories. . .

Personally, I think making a fortune to cross a picket line IS keeping solidarity with those 'on the line'. Nothing will bring about the solution you desire as a union member FASTER than management having to spend MORE money than it would take to just settle the dispute.

~faith,

Timothy.

ruthiebaby88 · Aug 7, 2006

holy cow i didn't realize this thread was so old! how in the heck did i manage to dig it up!?

anyway - people kept asking who takes care of patients during a strike?

i had a friend who worked a strike where the doctors involved with providing direct patient care- she said it was really scary because they didn't really know how to do things by policy like hanging blood transfusions etc, i can see that it would be a problem having heard a doctor trying to convince a nurse to give a direct iv bolus of potassium - nurses aren't doctors and doctors aren't nurses and in our system patients need both!

nightingale, RN · Aug 7, 2006

Often the posts will have similiar posts as an option. I remember seeing these on the bottom of the pages. I do not see them right now. An old post can still be "timely" with questions asked and answered so, as Moderator, I do allow them to stay when they crop up.

Happy posting.

ruthiebaby88 · Aug 7, 2006

fair enough! just not sure how I stumbled across it!

bagladyrn, RN · Aug 9, 2006

This is a really old thread. I checked in to see why it had been resurrected, and after reading the current posts, just wanted to make a point for those who may not have been around long enough to have had this explained before:

When hospitals hire strikebreakers to cross picket lines it does NOT hurt the hospital or corporation financially. Hospitals have insurance policies which kick in to pay for the strikebreakers. Therefore you are NOT in any way "helping" the striking nurses by taking these positions. If you decide to take one of these jobs you are doing it for your own profit only. Maybe thats enough, but at least be honest with yourself about it.