Join our nurses and volunteer with Tom’s Turkey Drive to support our Spokane community. Our union is providing two days for ten nurses to volunteer for a 3-hour shift supporting this event. RSVP here if you are interested in either day.

Hospital Staffing Committee Update 

Our members remain hard at work to find resolution for 2026 staffing plans. A huge thank you to all the nurses who reviewed their staffing plans and have provided feedback. There remain inconsistencies with certain plans, and we continue to have discussion about how professional organization guidelines fit into our staffing plans.

Our next meeting is November 6 where we will be addressing the staffing plans to try and find resolution towards a 2026 plan.

We encourage nurses who experience a situation that is unsafe for themselves or for their patients including being made to participate in a break buddy system, notify your charge RN and file an unsafe staffing form. Our union does not support break buddies where two nurses with patient assignments provide break relief for each other. This results in a doubling of patient assignments which we feel is never safe.

Let’s Talk About Low Census

We have heard from many nurses with concerns about how low census is being applied. We encourage our nurses to read Article 11.3 of our union contract that describes low census in detail. While each situation can vary, here are a few tips for nurses who experience low census.

First- nurses should ALWAYS ask if the low census is voluntary or mandatory.

• The hospital must release travelers and agency nurses prior to giving out any mandatory low census (MLC).

Second- nurses can ask if they sought volunteers if they are being assigned a mandatory low census

• Our contract requires the hospital to seek volunteers. We have heard from nurses they’ve been given a mandatory low census, but their colleague would have gone home. Ask IRC or whoever is issuing the low census, if they have asked everyone. If they haven’t, ask them to call others first.

Social Media Update

Check out our Instagram information below!

What’s Happening at Providence Kadlec?

Our WSNA brothers and sisters are 6 sessions into their contract bargaining with Providence. Here is their latest update.

“After six full bargaining sessions, we are not yet encouraged that resolution will be timely, collaborative, or guided by the needs and experiences of staff. Too often, management’s responses reference only the “potential” financial impacts to the organization while disregarding the very real, immediate impacts nurses face every day: staffing shortages, missed breaks, unsafe workloads, and financial strain from years of stagnant wages.

Our priority issues remain

• Wages and Advancement- Providence recently offered wages totaling 7% over 3 years
• Workplace Violence Prevention: WSNA again presented our proposal for enhanced security measures, including the installation of a weapons detection system at facility entry points. Unfortunately, management once again denied the proposal in full and failed to provide any meaningful counteroffer.
• Meals and Rest Breaks: WSNA continues to stand firm on our proposal to establish dedicated Break RN positions to ensure nurses can take their legally required rest and meal periods without compromising patient care or relying on unsafe “buddy” systems

Stay tuned for more updates on how our union siblings are doing at their contract tables!

Questions? Contact one of our officers on our homepage or our WSNA Nurse Representative Alle Machorro at amachorro@wsna.org