Do you know that the California Nurses Association is currently in MY hospital. I work at Cypress Fairbanks Medical Center in Northwest Houston and have been here for 6 years. We have a great hospital and our management staff is very supportive. CNA moved in January 2nd. We were blindsided by this becasue Federal Law prevents our managers, supervisors, CEO, directors and charge nurses form discussing the union with us. They are not to allowed to answer ANY questions about the union or provide education to us. They have to respond "please go talk with your fellow nurses". They are unable to allow us to meet in a designated conference room in our own building because the union sees this as "aiding" us in anti union activities. We had to stand out in the cold and distribute educational material from the Texas Nurses Association to our staff. The sad thing is the nurses have to form together as a unit and fight. Fight for our rights!! Please do not think that our management staff is not helping us out is their choice! The union dictates what they can say to us. We are forbidden to ask them questions, but cannot trust anything the union says. Think about it, why would the CNA care about us? It is all about money! Our freedom of speech and First Ammendment Rights are gone! These union reps can also enter our break room during our breaks! If one nurse wants them to stay, they get to stay and nurses are forced to listen to them while they eat. As a nurse, you know how important your one and usually only 30 minute break is. They come each and every day on days and nights. They bring in catered food and on nights deliver it to the nurses! They are making many promises with NO written guarantees. They have divided units in half and I'm afraid no matter what the result, it will never be the same. Now we have to vote. The vote will decide if we become unionized or not. Then we will supposedly get this contract that promises us the moon! We asked how long the contract would take, it went from 30 to 60 to 90 days then 6 months to 1 year all in one conversation with the reps! They only needed 30% of RN's to sign a card to get a vote. At first, before we really caught on to what their tactics were, several nurses signed cards to get lunch, information etc. Now, they regret it, and fortunately the vote will be anonymous, so they can still vote no. Do you remember the California strikes? Some of you probably went out there to take care of patients that those nurses abandoned? This is really scary! The union rep told me that they are already visiting Ben Taub. Can you imagine a strike in the medical center? What is so ridiculous, is that they are promising thing we already have in place! A raise of 8% over 3 years. Well, we get 3% anually with our evals, that is 9% over 3 years, do the math. Also we will be paying union dues, which they say is 1-2% of our salary! They are going to get us this staffing rations just like California, but we already have the same ratios. 5 patients to 1 nurse on med surg, and tele. They promise to fill nursing positions, WITH WHAT NURSES!!!! There is a shortage you know. When we asked how they plan to do this, their response is that our contract will be so great all the nurses will want to come here to work. Please look into this and be prepared if it does come your way! Be ready with research, info and strength to fight back and to keep Texas nurses free to talk to management staff, free to voice their opinions and free to provide care for our patients without union disruption. I do not need a lawyer to negotiate for me! I am an intelligent, educated woman and I just want this all to go away!

I am not a nurse, but totally understand the plight that you are undergoing with this union activity.  I was a part of union in a different healthcare profession.  Unless if you were in bed with the union, all they cared about was your dues and the hell with the contract and code of ethics.  I had the distinct pleasure of working all the holidays, all off shifts and getting shafted on vacations and time off. 

 

I have nothing kind to say about that union, its staff and ethics.  It was obviously all about the money and the hell with those that paid the dues.

I wish I could relocate and work for the wonderful hospital that you described. Wow!  A place where management compensates and cares for the employees! Unfortunately, I don't work for such a "Pollyanish" place and I resent your implication that, (and I quote),  "the sad thing is the nurses have to form together as a unit and fight". With or without a union, nurses MUST form together as a unit and fight. Fight for what is right, and that my friend is quality patient care!

Yes, we do need to band together to fight.  Texas is a right to work state.  That means your employer can fire you for no good reason at all.

Where I work, nurses are constantly floated all over the hospital without receiving any orientation to the new floors.  Work load is anywhere from 6 to 8 patients per nurse except ICU which is 2 to 1.  Our sick policy is that until you are out 3 days, it goes against your PTO.   Doctor's notes are not taken into consideration at all and you are expected to work sick.  If you are out 3 days, you get a verbal reprimand.  Five days, written reprimand.   Six days, written reprimand and 3 days suspension.  Seven days - you're fired.  We are not guaranteed a 30-minute lunch - EVER.  We are not allowed to eat on the unit (our break room is between units - outside of the unit proper), but we aren't allowed to leave to eat either.  A 12-hr shift is a long time to go without a meal.   So, we end up breaking the "rules" every shift.  God help us if JCAHO pops in while we're stuffing our faces while running to a patient room. 

 

If JCAHO pops in, merely show them all of the problems that you speak of.

 Enlighten your state Dept of Labor of your inability to take your required breaks and lunches.

 

Hi There Machel,

I wanted to take the time to respond to your post and (1) acknowledge your feelings about forming a union, (2) clarify some misconceptions you stated,  (3) offer clarification on what's happening in California, and (4) offer a opportunity for you and your co-workers to look at this through a different lense.

1) From what you are describing about mgmt not being able to talk to you all about the current organizing campaign it sounds as if there is an organizing agreement between CNA and the company you work for, otherwise known as a neutrality agreement. This is not a bad thing, it just depends on the nature of the agreement. Keep in mind that hospitals & other companies will usually spend millions of dollars to maintain a union free workplace. Union busting is a multimillion dollar industry. Why is this?? Because mgmt doesn't want to share power with workers. Right now you may be able to talk to your mgr about issues but does your manager have any say in what your pension coverage is? pay rate levels? sign in bonuses? health insurance choices and co pays? staffing ratios? NO THEY DON'T because those things are dictated at a higher level in all organizations at which you and your coworkers have absolutely zero influence.

 AS far as CNA being the choice on the ballot that is unfortunate as they are not the union I would choose... but again we may buy a car we don't like but we still drive right. Don't throw the baby out with the bathwater. I belong to SEIU -Service Employees Intl Union and am very happy with them and so are my coworkers. 

The concept of a union is challenging for most people because it requires participation and SEIU is a democratic union as all should be. Just think about it-many of us belong to gyms and pay monthly dues, but if we don't go and particpate we don't see results. That's ideally how a union functions. My suggestion is GO UNION but VoteNo for CNA and start an organizing campaign with SEIU. 

There are only 2 sides in the workplace-your side as workers and the side of the boss. 

2) Regarding 1st Amendment Speech. In the workplace we are not protected by the Bill of Rights. There has been lots of case law on this issuse and the courts have ruled  that 1st Amendment rights of speech are not protected in the workplace. Most people don't know this. SO you are not as risk of losing anything because you currently do not have the rights you believed you did. 

Re: Talking to mgmt...Mgmt has an inherent bias in maintaining a union free/workers are powerless environment. They are they last people you should speak to about unionizing. Don't sweat it that they can't say anything to you -I can guarantee you what their response would be. Mgmt is predictable 100% of the time on this issue. The way you phrased your comments about this issue kind of come right out of Union Bisting 101, but I'm giving you the benefit of the doubt and taking your comments at face value. 

We all still talk to your mgrs the same as before and in no way does forming a union stop nurses from resolving workplace issues. The contract that you will negotiate should include your elected representatives as part of your bargaining team.

3) California Tele ratios are 4:1 not 5:1 as of 2008. I can tell you that our hospital system which is the 3rd largest in California uses the fact that we are union as part of their recruitment. We have negotiated employer paid health benefits-well that's like getting a 300$ raise a month. We receive $3000/yr in tuition reimbursement annually, $2100 every 6 months in retention bonus, and union dues are tax deductable. Nurses do not abandon patients during a strike. Federal law requires that healthcare workers give a 10 day notice prior striking. A strike is a last resort! With holding our labor is the last resort to achieving bargaining goals. Think about it Machel. Nurses are quitting nursing every day because of burn out-nurses do individual strikes all the time by quitting, changing jobs, and calling in sick.

Mgmt always has the ablity to avert a strike by settling with workers. The 10 day notice provides time for mgmt to reduce pt census, bargain with workers and reach an agreement, and find replacement nurses (we call those nurses scabs and they usually come from the south oddly enough where wages are much more greatly suppressed and nurses are not as greatly unionized). 

4) Forming a union is a stressful experience, but when you look at everyone else who does business with your hospital they all have a contract. The MD's, the CEO, the vendors, etc.