As the staffing crisis continues, we are working on multiple fronts to hold MultiCare accountable for meeting the staffing plan and following our contract. This includes pursuing grievances, documenting staffing plan noncompliance through Assignment Despite Objection forms, and demanding accountability through the Hospital Staffing Committee.

This work does not belong to any one person. It takes all of us in the NICU standing together, documenting what is happening, and enforcing the protections we fought to secure.

Keep reading for updates on these ongoing efforts and how you can help.

Direct Dealing Grievance Settled

Yesterday, you should have received an email from Katy confirming that management will not solicit or agree to individual holiday-scheduling arrangements that deviate from the contract. MultiCare sent this communication as part of a settlement resolving a WSNA grievance over direct dealing by management.

The grievance arose after management emailed nurses offering to waive their holiday requirements if they picked up a shift on Easter. One CANM’s email stated that management was “willing to make deals, so shoot your shot.”

This was a clear example of direct dealing, which is prohibited by the National Labor Relations Act. Because this was not the first occurrence and MultiCare had previously been told to stop, WSNA filed both a grievance and an unfair labor practice charge.

Through the grievance process, WSNA and NICU/Mary Bridge management reached a settlement requiring management to discontinue this practice and send yesterday’s corrective communication to all WSNA-represented nurses.

What Is Direct Dealing?

Direct dealing occurs when an employer bypasses the union and negotiates directly with individual employees over mandatory subjects of bargaining, including wages, hours, and working conditions.

We have received questions about why WSNA challenged this practice. The straightforward answer is that direct dealing violates federal labor law and cannot be allowed to continue.

More importantly, direct dealing undermines our ability to bargain collectively. Our strength comes from standing together and negotiating with one strong voice. Individual deals weaken that unity and can produce unfair and inconsistent outcomes.

For example, nurses who were already scheduled to work Easter as part of their normal rotation were not offered the same opportunity to waive a future holiday requirement. Management should not be able to select which employees receive special arrangements outside the contract.

Our contract is only as strong as our willingness to enforce it. Both WSNA and MultiCare must follow the entire agreement, not only the provisions that are convenient at a particular moment.

If you have questions about this grievance, please contact Jared at JRichardson@WSNA.org.

Other Pending Grievances

We currently have several grievances awaiting Step 2 or Step 3 hearings with MultiCare, including:

• Minimum two-hour pay for mandatory in-person training, such as NIRs
• The use of break buddies
• The denial of union representation rights related to performance improvement plans

Once hearing dates are scheduled, we will share attendance links with members who would like to participate.

Keep Filing ADOs

Keep sending in those ADOs.

The dozens of ADOs submitted since MultiCare changed its practice regarding nurses staying late have created a powerful record of what is happening in the NICU. This documentation will be critical as we bring these issues before the Hospital Staffing Committee and demand meaningful solutions.

Complete an ADO when:

• The staffing plan is not being met

• You are required to use a break buddy or receive a break from a nurse who is also responsible for patients

• Patient acuity makes your assignment unsafe or unmanageable
• You are assigned patients while serving as Charge, DELS, or break nurse, excluding patients temporarily covered while providing another nurse’s break
• You experience any safety, security, or environmental concern

Complete an ADO here: https://www.wsna.org/union/ado

Every ADO helps establish the scope and frequency of staffing problems. If it is not documented, MultiCare can claim it did not happen.

Hospital Staffing Committee Meeting

The next Hospital Staffing Committee meeting is scheduled for:

September 3, 2026
1100

The committee will review many of the ADOs that members have submitted. Given the number of pending ADOs, it is unlikely the committee will have enough time to address all of them during a single meeting. We are calling on management to schedule additional meeting time so every ADO can receive appropriate review.

If your ADO is scheduled for discussion, HSC Co-Chair Crystal Anderson will contact you and ask whether you would like to speak to the committee about your experience.

Participation in the Hospital Staffing Committee is paid time. If you are working when your ADO is heard, the employer must relieve you from your duties and provide appropriate coverage so patient care and staffing plan compliance are maintained.

Our Strength Comes From Standing Together

Grievances enforce our contract. ADOs document unsafe conditions. The Hospital Staffing Committee gives nurses a formal avenue to demand accountability. Each of these tools becomes more powerful when we use them collectively.

When we document unsafe staffing, defend our contract, and refuse to let management divide us through individual deals, we protect every nurse and every patient in the NICU.

This is how we turn individual concerns into collective action. This is how we hold MultiCare accountable. This is what solidarity looks like.

Questions or concerns, contact Jared at JRichardson@WSNA.org.