Ambulatory bargaining update #5 (April 20, 2021)
Published Tuesday, April 20, 2021Fellow NUHW members,
It was a quick session today, but an important one. We presented our economic proposals including our wage scales, compensation article and benefits package.
Based on our members’ feedback we have proposed a wage scale that not only goes up every year (like our co-workers in the Hospitals do) but also brings us to wage parity with the top Hospitals in the region. If you would like to see a copy of our proposal please contact a bargaining team member such as myself. To be clear, we are proposing additional seniority steps, a significantly increased start rate for all job titles, and that the entire scale and start rate go up every year in the form of a cost of living adjustment. Our co-workers in the Hospital won this in 2018 by voting to go on strike for three days.
We also proposed that the company provide a free family HMO option (no monthly premium) to every union member in the clinics. Our co-workers in the Hospitals have this benefit and it saves them anywhere from $6,000 – $15,000 every year in healthcare costs! We heard from our membership that free family health insurance was a very important priority.
We also proposed other economic articles like Education Benefits, Hours of Work, Employment and Income Security, Parking, Holidays, Leaves of Absence and Meal and Rest Periods — the majority of which include proposed improvements.
After we met with the Employer and presented these very important items, the Employer cancelled the rest of the session for the day. We were ready to continue working on the other articles that still need to be negotiated but as a group we decided to continue tomorrow morning and Thursday.
All of these proposals must be backed up by action. We will not win these major improvements without serious mobilization. That is how our Hospital union members have won improvements in the past. We have an historic opportunity to improve our contract, wages and benefits, as our contract expires at the end of the month just as it does for our 1200 brothers and sisters in Keck and Norris. With our combined power, we can push our standards forward, only if we are prepared to fight.
In Solidarity,
Krystal Benson
Beverly Hills, LVN
Bargaining Team Member
Union Steward