Nurses Month

Your nurses' month gifts have arrived, and your local unit officers and I will be rounding and bringing them to you on the units. We have gotten the essence aroma therapy nose rings, and we are excited to share these with everyone. 

Concerns around Retaliation – What you can do to protect yourself

How to file a DOSH (Division of Occupational Safety and Health) retaliation complaint

File a Safety & Health Retaliation complaint with the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries (L&I).

What qualifies

Examples of protected activity include reporting safety concerns to the employer, participating in union safety activity, or filing a safety complaint with DOSH. Retaliation can include discipline, demotion, layoffs, undesirable shift assignment, pay reduction, threats, intimidation, or termination.

How to file

You can file with L&I by using the online retaliation route or the Safety & Health Retaliation Complaint form (F416-011-000), then submitting it through secure upload, or by mail/fax as listed on the form. 

Deadline

For DOSH safety-and-health retaliation, the safest rule is to treat it as a 90-day deadline from the retaliatory act. 

What to gather before filing

Have a simple timeline ready, including pertinent information such as:

• Date/Time of incident
• Witnesses
• Any written or verbal communication 

ADOs: How and when to file them and why they are important

How to help ensure your ADO is reviewed at the HSC

The Hospital Staffing Committee (HSC) is expected to review staffing complaints/ADOs as 

part of the hospital staffing process and ensure compliance with the staffing law. 

Best practice when filing an ADO

1. Submit the ADO promptly and in writing with unit, shift, census, staffing matrix/assignment facts, acuity, missed breaks, safety concerns, and what relief was requested.
2. Reference staffing-plan variance facts plainly: please ensure actual vs. planned numbers for staff and patients are included.

Example Language when filing an ADO related to meal and rest breaks

• “This ADO addresses a nursing staff assignment on my patient care unit that is not in accordance with the adopted staffing plan. During meal and rest periods on my unit, the number of direct care nurses delivering patient care is less than is required to remain in compliance with the agreed-upon hospital staffing plan throughout the shift. The break relief system that is consistently used on my unit is the break buddy system.  Today, for purposes of patient safety, I missed one meal and an accurate number of rest break. During my scheduled break time, a registered nurse 

  was not available to provide break relief and patient care necessary to maintain compliance with the adopted unit staffing plan. As such, I worked through the meal and rest break.”

Important information about the meal and rest break law and waivers

• Rest Breaks cannot be waived, and your first break must happen within the first 4 hours of your shift, but no later than the first 3 hours.
• You may elect to waive your required meal period if you are working less than an 8-hour shift.
• The waiver between the nurses and the UWMC NW is à la carte; you can select what works best for you.
• Meal breaks are to be taken between the 3rd hour and the 5th hour worked, unless the timing is waived. You are then entitled to a meal period 5 hours after your initial meal period. 
• Any meal or rest break where timing is not waived and not provided in the time frame is considered missed and is paid out on the back end. 
• breaks may be interrupted only in limited situations such as a specific unforeseeable emergency or a clinical circumstance with a significant adverse effect on a patient’s condition.

Questions? Contact one of your officers or WSNA Nurse Representative Stephenie Troftgruben, stroftgruben@wsna.org.