| THE NEW CONTRACT IS NOW AVAILABLE IN THE NYPNU OFFICE. PLEASE STOP BY AND PICK UP YOUR COPY TODAY!! |
Staff/Management Committee Report
The policy for Professional Development Days has been completed and forwarded to Chris Sheppard for her review.
Sunrise Training
The Hospital intends to have the Sunrise Clinical Manager Application up and running so that charting can be done on the computers by September 2004. Those who are not familiar or comfortable with the Windows format may attend one-hour training sessions from Mondays to Saturdays until July 22nd. The training will be provided in the IT Training Room, 115 E. 77th St., 2nd Fl. For more information and to reserve your seat, contact Ann Cooper-Williams at x43252 acwilliams@lenoxhill.net Four-hour training sessions in Sunrise will follow. NYPNU members have the option of attending these sessions on workdays or receiving overtime pay for scheduling the training during time off.
Grievances and Unit Issues
A class action grievance has been filed on behalf of the Cardiac OR nurses. The contract requires that 2 nurses circulate on all open-heart cases, but this staffing requirement has been chronically violated.
A class action grievance will be filed on behalf of the nurses in Ambulatory Surgery because nurses have been required to stay beyond their scheduled shift to care for late cases. This constitutes mandatory overtime in violation of our contract.
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The Union and management held a meeting on 9 Uris to address problems with staffing, breaks, non-nursing functions, and charge/resource responsibilities. The new nurse/ patient ratio of 1:7 has been consistently violated despite a side letter to the contract, which commits the hospital to endeavor to come into compliance with the new ratios immediately. On many days the 1:7 ratio could be met but for the fact that a nurse is invariably floated off the unit.
In addition, nurses on 9 Uris are not being permitted to combine their short breaks. Staff members are required to go off the floor one at a time, which results in unreasonably early and late breaks. The resource nurse is also being asked to perform responsibilities, such as making bed assignments, beyond the five that are enumerated in the contract. If management does not promptly address these issues, we will pursue appropriate remedies through the grievance procedure and arbitration.
Political Action
The American Association of Registered Nurses (AARN) will conduct a Rally in the Alley at the Democratic National Convention in Boston on Monday, July 26th from 9pm-2am. Anyone interested in joining nurses from Arizona, California, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York and Pennsylvania for this celebration of democracy at work should RSVP to Ashley Webb at awebb@rendonbos.com or 617-912-3816.
Watch your mailbox for an action alert asking you to write a letter to Senator Bruno in support of the Unintended Pregnancy Prevention Act. This legislation will make the Morning After Pill available through pharmacists and registered nurses without a prescription.
NYPNU Web Site
Back issues of the NYPNU Update are available at www.nypnu.org. A fresh NYPNU Website is coming soon! |
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