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Nurses Won't Be Rushed
Into Concessions
'We are Dedicated to Working with the Hospital to Resolve their Financial Crisis'
The registered nurses of North Adams Regional Hospital voted today not to reopen negotiations on their collective bargaining agreement. "The hospital made it clear that they want to rush these negotiations and the only solutions they have come up with are severe concessions," said bargaining unit Chairwoman Ruth O'Hearn, a registered nurse.
The hospital raised the possibility of reopening negotiations in early November and then for the next six weeks said nothing. On Dec. 22, management informed the Massachusetts Nurses Association bargaining unit that they needed to know by Jan. 2, 2009, if the nurses would participate in concession negotiations, which must be completed within two weeks.
The nurses did not receive a concession proposal until Wednesday, Dec. 24. Obviously, there were logistical problems with two major holidays in this period and many nurses are out of town or on vacation. But, according to O'Hearn, there are more serious problems. "First we didn't get their proposals until Dec. 24 and they are offering very little time to discuss and review these concession demands with our members," she said. "If the hospital was aware of possible financial problems almost two months ago, why wouldn't they have offered to sit down with us at that point?"
The proposal the hospital put forward includes cutting a previously negotiated pay raise scheduled for April 1 and troublesome language changes on overtime and differentials that the nurses have gained over many years of hard-fought contract negotiations.
"We continue to be dedicated to providing the highest quality care to our patients and doing our part at the bedside. We are also dedicated to the hospital and want to see its continued fiscal viability. We live and work in this community. This is our hospital, but we will not be threatened and pushed by management. We are dedicated to working with the hospital to resolve their financial crisis," said O'Hearn.
For the original release posted on the MNA Web site, click here. |
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Massachusetts Nurses Association Declines to Open NARH Contract
The community trustees and leaders of Northern Berkshire Healthcare had been hopeful that the Massachusetts Nurse Association would work together with them to meet twin goals: responding to the economic crisis and preserving jobs.
We were disappointed to learn that MNA members voted down our request to open their contract. Northern Berkshire Healthcare proposed contract changes that would have helped the hospital save $467,000 without implementing a layoff.
North Adams Regional Hospital is among the 74 percent of hospitals nationwide, according to one survey, that have acted in response to the crisis state of the economy. Like other hospitals surveyed, NARH is affected by:
* Reductions in Medicaid payments.
* A decline in the value of pension investments. This will require NBH to pay an additional $1.2 million to cover pensions promised to employees and retirees.
* Decreasing numbers of admissions as more Americans delay care either for fear of losing their jobs because of absence or a desire to save money in the face of current and anticipated economic challenges.
* Fewer patients seeking elective procedures, and therefore lower revenue.
* Increasing numbers of uninsured patients.
Given these challenges, NBH has been working on a plan to reduce its expense budget by $4.5 million.
The request to open the MNA contract was one part of that plan. The proposal to save more than $460,000 while keeping people employed included requests such as paying for overtime after 40 hours worked. This is consistent with federal labor law for individuals who receive weekly paychecks. The MNA contract requires overtime both after 8 and 40 hours, in excess of federal requirements.
Another contract change proposed would allow the hospital to use part-time staff first and then, if necessary, per diem staff to replace hours for nurses who are sick or on vacation. This change would avoid expensive overtime pay.
Following the principles of shared sacrifice and job preservation, NBH has already identified more than $3 million in savings. The savings include:
* Freezing open positions for a savings of $1 million.
* The executive management team agreeing to forego any merit pay increases, while merit increases for other managers and non-union employees were reduced from 4 percent to 2 percent.
* Reducing travel and education costs and trimming supply budgets.
The value of the contract changes NBH sought represents only 10 percent of the $4.5 million savings goal. The cost of MNA wages and benefits totals 18 percent of the hospital's budget.
The changes that will be implemented and those proposed to the MNA are needed to reduce operating costs to be more consistent with other small health-care organizations that receive the majority of payments for services provided to patients from public funding sources such as Medicare and Medicaid.
Reimbursement from these public sources generally does not cover the cost of the care provided. And, at NARH, more than 60 percent of reimbursement comes from these sources.
Further, as an organization committed to serving all of those who live in our community who have emergent needs, we provide care irrespective of an individual's ability to pay. As the economy has weakened, more patients have been receiving care for free.
Given these realities, we must assure that our pay and benefit practices are fair and competitive while eliminating excessive benefits.
"We are proud of the high-quality staff who work throughout the NBH family," said Richard Palmisano, president and CEO of NBH and a registered nurse. "We will assure that our staff receives competitive wages and benefits. Unfortunately, legacy costs from old contracts cannot be maintained into the future."
He added, "We remain hopeful that MNA members will reconsider when the full magnitude of the repercussions of their decision not to negotiate are known."
NBH statement released by Dianne M. Cutillo, vice president of external affairs |
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