Winter 2017 Council Members
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NEWSLETTER OF MNA REGION 5 VOLUME EIGHT, ISSUE ONE • Winter 2017 Council Members Joan Ballantyne, Norwood Hospital Chair (2016-2018) Barbara Tiller, Tufts Medical Center Vice Chair (2016-2018) Kathy Reardon, Norwood Hospital Secretary (2017-2018) Dan Rec, B&W Faulkner Hospital Treasurer (2015-2017) MNA Board Rep (2016-2018) Dan Rec, B&W Faulkner Hospital MNA Board Rep (2015-2017) Joan Ballantyne, Norwood Hospital vacant At-Large (2016-2018) VACANT At-Large (2016-2018) vacant VACANT At-Large (2015-2017) Kirsten Ransom, St. Elizabeth’s vacant At-Large (2015-2017) VACANT Each of these R5 facilities holds an elected voting rep. at R5 council meetings: American Red Cross Boston Medical Center Boston VNA Brigham & Women’s Hospital Brigham & Women’s Faulkner Hospital CHA Cambridge Hospital CHA Everett Hospital CHA Somerville Hospital Carney Hospital Dana Farber Cancer Institute Dialysis Clinic, Inc. Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates Medford School Nurses Newton Public Health Newton-Wellesley Hospital Norwood Hospital In This Issue: Quincy Medical Center Satellite St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center Bargaining Unit Updates Page 2 Tufts Medical Center Unit 7 (state facilities) Representative Greater Boston Labor Council Page 2 MNA Continuing Ed Page 3 MNA Regional Council 5 MNA Email Page 3 340 Turnpike St, Canton 02021 781-821-8255 TEL • 781-821-8256 FAX MNA Reduced Dues Info Page 3 [email protected] www.massnurses.org/region5 Save Health Care Rally at Faneuil Hall on 1/15/17 Save the Dates Page 4 www.facebook.com/massnurses with Senator Elizabeth Warren, Senator Ed Markey, Mayor Marty MNA Labor School Page 4 Harriett Duggan, Office Manager Walsh, and members of the MA Congressional Delegation Brian Moloney, Community Organizer Page 1 Bargaining Unit Updates Boston Medical Center submitted by Susan We are thrilled to have a full staff again so we violence towards staff. Our Workplace Violence Sirrico. The BMC committee remains in ongoing can provide quality care to our students. With Committee is currently working with contract negotiations with the hospital. We are our in school flu clinics behind us we have now management and the MNA to address this very currently in a discussion with our members and actively completed our state-mandated real threat to our staff. The hospital-sponsored the hospital regarding position selection screening and will begin contract negotiations holiday party was well attended and the hard language and job security for our members after this summer. working staff of Norwood found time to relax and the consolidation of the East Newton Campus catch up with their friends and colleagues and MNA nurses and the Menino Campus SEIU Newton-Wellesley Hospital submitted by showed their finery and skills on the dance floor. nurses. This language will outline a process for Laurie Andersen & Betty Sparks. NWH The normal work day often does not afford us the MNA nurses to select positions within the continues to stand up to management over the time for simple social interaction between SEIU unit once the consolidation has occurred. staffing cuts and safety concerns throughout the coworkers and different departments within the hospital. Over 600 NWH nurses signed a vote hospital and it’s good to be reminded that we all Brigham & Women’s Hospital of no confidence in the nursing leadership of have lives outside of the work environment. We submitted by Trish Powers. An Karen Conley and presented it to Dr. Michael are holding a food drive in February as part of open meeting was held on 1/17/17 Jaff, our new CEO. Dr. Jaff responded to our our Region 5 community outreach project. Keep and new bylaws/guidelines were executive committee with a very nasty letter. Not an eye out for the MNA mobile unit collecting all unanimously approved. Information surprising Conley resigned. What did surprise us our stacks of cans and provisions. on the upcoming committee is her position was immediately filled by Kevin election will be sent out soon. The Whitney from Mass General. It seems that all St. Elizabeth’s submitted by new contract has just been finalized and copies positions of upper management are being filled Kirsten Ransom. We continue to will be distributed next month. A grievance filed with Mass General candidates. Dr. Jaff assures work to develop the ICU acuity tool. over the scheduling of holidays in Interventional us an improved working relationship going We remain short staffed in many Radiology was recently settled and holidays will forward. Time will tell! Our staffing remains areas but they are actively hiring to now be fairly rotated. inadequate in the ED and Med/Surg fill the positions. We have had units. Floating in the Mother/ Baby unit to the multiple turnovers in management, from floor Brigham & Women’s Faulkner Special Care nursery is an issue. During the managers to HR and the President. This has Hospital submitted by Kathy made it very difficult to make progress on some Glennon & Dan Rec. The BWFH outstanding issues. We are working with and reinstituted weeknight call in the MNA Region 5 is a member of the educating the new management team on the PACU. We are currently trialing the issues. We are in the very beginning stages of plan to work out the details. In the preparations for negotiations to begin this year. OR, the hospital wants the nurses to start being the ones who manipulate the Arch table. We are Tufts Medical Center submitted working the details of this out also. As of by Mary Havlicek Cornacchia. We January the hospital has started a new pension This means: are on negotiation session #20. plan and has proposed to replace the one we MNA Region 5 is a member of the umbrella After running a month long 'letter to have now with the new one. We are looking over organization for labor unions in the greater the CNO' campaign, we collected the information given to us. Mandatory overtime Boston area. 700 letters. The mobilization and continues in the emergency dept. and on the MNA Region 5 has the opportunity to send engagement in this campaign has psych unit. delegates to GBLC monthly meetings. Our resulted in great momentum and the voices will be heard! Our votes will count! administration is keenly aware. Our Facebook page is up to nearly 900 members and has Cambridge Health Alliance MNA Region 5 can network, access outreach served to connect all of our members. The submitted by Susan Wright Thomas. opportunities and attend solidarity events. hospital cancelled the last negotiation session in We are preparing for contract negotiations, expected to begin this If you would like to be considered for appoint-ment order to "regroup." They came to the table with summer. The bargaining unit will be as a delegate to the GBLC, please contact: counter proposals that indicated they have surveyed regarding priorities and Brian Moloney, Region 5 Community Organizer finally started to listen to our issues with all of concerns. The Executive Committee has begun [email protected] • 781-830-5704 their original takeaways. We appreciate the work on proposals. Developing a working ================================== movement in their counters but there is so much relationship with new management leadership is work to be done. After they presented all of their ongoing. MNA R5 purchased a table at the 11/17/16 counters, the committee read several of the GBLC annual dinner and salute to municipal letters to the CNO at the table. Those messages Carney Hospital submitted by Elaine Graves. office holders. The event was held at the were powerful and so moving to read. They Committee starting to think about negotiations. Montvale Plaza, Stoneham. clearly illustrate all of the issues facing our New CNO at Carney is working out okay. We nurses every single day and explain why we will have a few arbitrations coming up; one about an not accept concessionary bargaining. These RN in psych that was terminated. Looking good nurses’ learning curves of the Epic computer letters also served to unite every nurse in our for us. Have a charge against Carney with system, orders are missed, put in the wrong bargaining unit! Our next step is a survey NLRB about paying to park at Carney. Census place, and are at times dangerously wrong! This monkey that will define just how far our up, says we are making money. Opened a new is when experience is the KEY to patient safety! members are willing to go to fight for the floor. ED construction is done and brand new! It takes an experienced RN to say, “No, let’s resources we need to care for our patients and look at this again.” We all need to rally together the compensation we deserve. Our next session Medford School Nurses submitted by Allison and get our Safe Patient Question* on the 2018 is in the first week of February and we will stand MacGilvray. As we approach the half way mark Ballot so every RN in Massachusetts can safely strong together! of the school year, we continue to work as a take care of their patients no matter what team to keep all of our students safe and hospital they work at or what computer system Whidden Hospital submitted by healthy. With the cold weather upon us we have they use. The nurses have been vocal and Carla Cerrato. Nothing to report at worked together to collect mittens, winter coats strong in filling out unsafe staffing forms, this time. and boots for students who may need them. As I attending meetings and communicating with the have said several times in the past, the families MNA reps regarding ongoing concerns. of Medford are very lucky to have such Together we will continue to stand up for patient dedicated school nurses.