On July 21, your officer team agreed to an incentive bonus structure MOU that will hopefully bolster critical staffing levels hospital wide. Providence approached us on the week of July 11 with an offer to provide lump-sum incentive bonuses for 8- and 12-hour extra shifts.

We countered the initial offering as we felt the amounts did not reflect the physical and emotional strain nurses are facing. Providence did counter the following week with an offer that made some gains for the bargaining unit. Your officer team reapproached Providence with a second counter in an attempt to secure additional gains for the bargaining unit, however Providence was unwilling to agree to our second counter.

Providence did not adjust their second and final offer, so your officers accepted, knowing that staffing has been critically short. We hope this MOU will be effective in helping those staffing levels. We have communicated to management that we are open to renegotiation if this MOU proves less effective than hoped.

We are happy to announce the new MOU is an improvement on the last, as it exceeds the prior 40% addition to base pay and is approximately time-and-a-half, depending on wage scale placement.

On the initial offer Providence only offered incentives for 12 and 8-hour shifts. Your officer team advocated for 10 and 4-hour blocks. We were able to secure 10-hour shifts however were not able to reach a deal for 4-hour blocks. Your officer team carried your voices and stressed to management that these blocks of shifts are often utilized the most to fill staffing gaps and made every negotiation attempt to have these included.

Thank you all for your incredible hard work amidst extreme adversity.

Your officer team and committees are vocal and bring your concerns forth at every opportunity. We are working diligently to advocate for better conditions for all of us, but ultimately our strength is critical this fall, in unity and numbers, during negotiations.

Your bargaining team is taking this staffing climate very, very seriously. We all need to be prepared to stand firm and unite for our needs as both nurses and community members.

The team knows this and is committed to this goal. We need everyone to be active and involved in some capacity, even if it’s only attending local unit meetings or talking with your coworkers about what’s going on. Every voice matters. Be the voice for your patients and your coworkers. Get involved today.

In solidarity,

Alyssa Boldt, Co-Chair
Clint Wallace, Co-Chair
Rian Williams, Treasurer
Wendy McNairy, Secre­tary

Wendy McNairy, Grievance Officer
Alle Machorro, Member-At-Large
Jessica Lewellen, Member-At-Large

Questions? Contact Nurse Rep Jaclyn Smedley BSN, RN at jsmedley@wsna.org.