SEIU Healthcare 1199NW and Swedish Medical Center have negotiated a new three year collective bargaining agreement ratified by 97% of members. The new agreement covers more than 4,000 registered nurses, technical staff, and service workers.
“The contract represents a significant investment in caregivers and the patients we serve,” said Diane Sosne, RN, president of SEIU Healthcare 1199NW. “The contract addresses common interests around staffing, but also implements proactive measures including the new ‘training and upgrading fund’ to provide our members with career mobility that will help address nurse and healthcare staff shortages.”
The collective bargaining agreement includes:
• A ‘training and upgrading fund’ between SEIU Healthcare 1199NW, Swedish Medical Center, Stevens Hospital, Northwest Hospital & Medical Center, Highline Medical Center, and Valley Medical Center - a first in the state of Washington for acute care hospitals. This fund will help address the shortage of healthcare staff by providing training and education opportunities to currently employed healthcare staff. Governor Gregoire and the legislature adopted a $1.5 million allocation in the 2008 supplemental budget to train healthcare workers for high vacancy jobs through programs such as these.
• Job security measures including a ‘no subcontracting’ clause in Washington to ensure that jobs done by Swedish Medical Center employees will not be subcontracted out; a pledge not to manage hospital finances through cyclical layoffs; opportunity for creation of new union jobs in future expansions of Swedish Medical Center; and protection of charge nurses’ right to remain union members under the Supreme Court Kentucky River ruling.
• Wage increases for Registered Nurses between 12% - 15% over the three year contract.
• Wage increases for service and technical healthcare staff between 8% - 10.5% over the three year contract. Service and technical healthcare staff also benefited from a 3% wage increase on April 1 that was bargained as part of their previous contract.
• Maintenance of full employer paid healthcare coverage for employees, with a modest increase in the employee share of dependent coverage beginning in 2010, and no other out-of-pocket increases for the three year contract.
• Incorporation of the new safe staffing law passed by the legislature, which requires collaboration between front line managers and nurses to develop and evaluate a publicly posted staffing plan.
“This contract is a win for our patients” said Nancy Gladsjo, RN at Swedish Medical Center. “Our working conditions are also patient care conditions, and the provisions in this contract ensure that we can continue to deliver quality patient care at Swedish.”
The new three year contract covers Registered Nurses, service and technical healthcare workers and is effective until June 30, 2011.
Five area hospitals represented by SEIU Healthcare 1199NW are currently in contract negotiations. Swedish Medical Center is the first hospital to settle their contract among the five hospitals with contract expirations of June 30, 2008. St. Clare Hospital in Lakewood, Stevens Hospital in Edmonds, Valley General Hospital in Monroe, and Valley Medical Center in Renton and are still in negotiations.
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SEIU Healthcare 1199NW is Washington state’s largest healthcare union, representing more than 22,000 nurses, healthcare employees, and mental health workers in hospitals, agencies, and clinics statewide. SEIU Healthcare is the nation’s largest and fastest-growing healthcare union, with more than 1 million healthcare workers united for quality patient care and good careers.