After one week of contract negotiations with the Ontario Hospital Association (OHA), SEIU Local 1 Canada held its ground on job security, made progress at the RPN Table, and emphasized important issues that are confronting our clerical and service members, both full and part-time.
JOB SECURITY
Job security protections surfaced early on as the most important issue. SEIU is the only health care union with “10:01 Staff Planning” language, which requires hospital employers to notify SEIU in advance and to include members as equal partners in staff planning decisions. No other union has such strong language that protects members from outsourcing and workforce restructuring. SEIU Local 1 Canada President Sharleen Stewart confirmed during bargaining: “We will not weaken our members’ staff planning protections.”
Nancy Barrett
Humber River Regional Hospital
Outsourcing is a huge issue for clerical and service workers. In my hospital, we already have an agency that can step into our jobs, get paid half the wage, receive no benefits, and has no experience in our hospital. We are dedicated to our hospital community.
CLERICAL SERVICE WORKERS
The threat of job outsourcing was among Wednesday’s detailed discussions. Chief Negotiator Brad Philp reminded the OHA’s bargaining committee of the specialized skills that clerical and service workers provide in their hospitals and to patients.
“The contribution that so many of our members make for patients, such as housekeepers, environmental services and dietary employees,” Philp said, “always seem to be underappreciated.”
As a result, Philp asked the OHA representatives flatly:
“Is housekeeping and dietary not part of patient care?” The OHA’s response demonstrated that they certainly are.
PART-TIME MEMBERS’ ISSUES
The SEIU Bargaining Committee emphasized part-time issues and the necessity to “fill the holes in our agreement that need to be filled.”
“The Bargaining Committee is committed to addressing the needs of part-time members and will not allow lesser contract conditions going forward,” SEIU President Sharleen Stewart reminded the committee in caucus Friday morning.
Brad Philp
SEIU Chief Negotiator
We are getting down to the nitty-gritty issues, including monetary issues, and both sides have tabled wage proposals, which we will continue to discuss.
RPN ISSUES
The RPN Table is unique to SEIU hospital bargaining. No other union in Ontario has a separate table within central bargaining to discuss the unique challenges RPN’s face in our rapidly changing health system. SEIU’s lead at the RPN Table is Hospital Workers Council (HWC) Chair and RPN Division Vice President Carol McDowell. On Thursday morning, McDowell reported at SEIU’s Bargaining Committee caucus meeting that the RPN Table discussions were productive, and, in fact, had renewed both side’s optimism as the lengthy negotiations proceeded into their fourth day.
Wanda White
Greater Niagara General Hospital
In the bargaining proposals there is an RPN section, so we can negotiate the special needs of RPNs. SEIU’s vision for the RPN Division is coming together in this round of bargaining.