Warm weather and beautiful summer skies might have us dreaming of lakeside days and evenings on the porch, but the hospital operates 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and our union work never stops.

July has been a busy month, with Hospital Staffing Committee meetings, local unit board meetings, Conference Committee, and grievance hearings. Keep reading to stay up to date on what is happening at St. Joe’s.

Night Shift Rounding July 21

Nurse Representative Jared and members of our local unit board will conduct night shift rounding on July 21 from 2300 to 0100. We will stop by breakrooms, update union bulletin boards, and hand out swag and candy.

If you are working, make sure to stop by and say hello. We look forward to hearing what is happening on your unit.

Winter Holiday Schedules

Article 9.4.2 of our contract states:

“Every effort will be made to establish the December and January schedules by July 1.”

That means winter holiday schedules should already be posted on your unit. Check your schedule now so you can plan ahead.

If your December and January schedules have not been posted, contact a local unit board member or Nurse Representative Jared.

Know Your Rights: Mandatory Low Census

We understand there has been an increase in mandatory low census. It is important to know how low census works and when an FTE nurse may be required to take it.

Article 11.2 establishes the following order for low census:

1. Nurses working overtime or receiving premium pay during a nonscheduled shift. Less-rest premium on a scheduled day does not count. 
2. Volunteers. 
3. Agency and traveler nurses. 
4. Per diem nurses. 
5. Nurses working in excess of their FTE at the straight rate of pay. For example, a 0.6 FTE nurse working a third shift without receiving overtime or premium pay. 
6. FTE nurses working a regularly scheduled shift. 

The sixth category is the only form of mandatory low census permitted under the contract. Options one through five must be exhausted before an FTE nurse working a regularly scheduled shift may be mandated.

Mandatory low census is capped at 48 hours during each six-month period: January through June and July through December.

If you are placed on mandatory low census, review your timecard to make sure the time is coded as MLC. Proper coding is essential to ensure your mandatory low census hours are accurately tracked.

If you believe you were improperly placed on mandatory low census, contact a local unit board member or Nurse Representative Jared at JRichardson@WSNA.org.

Grievance Updates

We held seven separate Step 3 grievance hearings on July 18. Six were hospital-wide Association grievances, and one was an Association grievance involving PACU nurses.

Most of these grievances involve ongoing payroll problems connected to Symplr. PeaceHealth has two weeks to respond. Given the number of employees affected and the scope of the remedies requested, we recognize that the responses may take additional time.

The grievances addressed the following issues:

Improper Calculation of Overtime and Premium Pay

Our contract requires overtime and other 1.5-times premium pay, including less-rest and consecutive-weekend premiums, to be calculated using a nurse’s regular rate of pay.

Depending on the nurse and the shift worked, the regular rate may include the base rate, NTL or RNTL, BSN or MSN premiums, shift differential, per diem differential, PNAP, and preceptor pay.

We maintain that PeaceHealth has failed to include all applicable forms of compensation when calculating these payments. We are demanding a complete audit, correction of the calculation, and full back pay for every affected nurse.

Improper Shift Differential When Using PTO

When nurses use PTO, they must receive the shift differential they would have earned had they worked their normal shift.

For example, a nurse normally scheduled from 0700 to 1930 should receive 4.5 hours of evening-shift differential when using PTO for the entire shift.

This problem has continued without an effective resolution. We are demanding full repayment of all missed differentials and a permanent fix that does not require nurses to manipulate their timecards or jump through unnecessary hurdles to receive correct pay.

Float Pay for PACU Nurses Sent to SSU

Our position is that nurses who float from their home unit to another unit are entitled to float pay, except when floating within the specific women's and children center clinical grouping identified in the contract.

We learned that PACU nurses have routinely been sent to work in SSU without receiving float pay. We are demanding appropriate float pay and back pay for every affected PACU nurse.

Excess-of-Shift Overtime for Missed Meal Periods

The contract provides excess-of-shift overtime protections for 8-, 10-, and 12-hour nurses. If a nurse misses or works through an unpaid meal period, that nurse has worked beyond the scheduled shift and is entitled to excess-of-shift overtime.

We demanded a comprehensive audit of missed and worked-through meal periods and full payment to every affected nurse.

Inequitable Payment of Shift Differentials

The contract requires shift differential to be paid for all hours worked during an evening or night shift. If a nurse works during those hours, the nurse is entitled to the applicable differential for that time.

We demanded a full audit of evening- and night-shift hours to identify every instance in which shift differential was not properly paid, full back pay for affected nurses, and a permanent correction going forward.

Incorrect Holiday Standby Pay

Since Symplr was implemented, nurses have not consistently received the correct standby rate on holidays. Nurses assigned standby on a holiday must receive 1.5 times the applicable standby rate.

We demanded that PeaceHealth audit all holiday standby assignments since Symplr was implemented, pay every affected nurse the difference owed, and correct the problem moving forward.

Our Contract Is Only as Strong as Our Willingness to Enforce It

PeaceHealth chose to implement Symplr. Software problems, payroll complications, and administrative inconvenience do not excuse the failure to pay nurses correctly.

These grievances are about more than correcting individual paychecks. They are about holding PeaceHealth accountable to the contract we negotiated and enforcing the standards we won together.

Every time nurses review their paychecks, report a problem, file a grievance, or stand alongside a coworker, our collective power grows stronger. When we remain informed, involved, and united, PeaceHealth has to listen.

In solidarity,
Laura Bayes, Co-Chair
Amber Pouley, Co-Chair
Jenn Engelhart, Co-Secretary
Laura Sherwood, Co-Secretary
Tracy Pullar, Treasurer
Stacy Gaggia Libby, Grievance Officer
Celeste Montoy-Seimears, Membership Officer
Tracy Taylor, Membership Officer
Kristin Malmo, Communications Officer
Kelly Carroll, Communications Officer
Errin Hull, Co-Occupational Health and Safety Officer
Jessica Moran, Co-Occupational Health and Safety Officer

Questions? Contact WSNA Nurse Representative Jared Richardson, jrichardson@wsna.org.