16% Wage Increase Over Three Years!
10% upon ratification, 3% effective April 1, 2023, 3% effective April 2024! These increases will ensure that Central is leading the market and attracting nurses.

Ratification Bonus. The Employer shall pay a ratification bonus of twelve hundred dollars ($1200), pro-rated based on FTE status (pool nurses will be treated as a .2 FTE) to nurses on the active payroll as April 1, 2022 and of the date of payout.

MOU Break Relief Nurse Trial. The Hospital will agree to test out using break relief nurses on one unit for one year, and will then assess impacts on things such as nurse satisfaction and patient outcomes.

7.2 Recognition for Past Experience. Nurses hired before the 2019-2022 agreement went into effect who would be eligible to receive a step increase based on experience can receive a step increase effective April 1, 2024. The Hospital will also review the financial impact of full parity (bringing all nurses hired before the 2019 agreement to their appropriate rate of pay per the scale in Art. 7.2), allowing this issue to be bargained next contract.

8.1 Shift Differential. Nurses on night shift will have their shift differential raised to $4.25 (currently, the differential is as low as $3.40). Nurses currently receiving more than this will continue to receive their current differential.

8.2 Standby/On-Call. Standby pay will be increased by $1/hour on holidays. Standby will be increased to $6/hour for all standby hours in excess of 31 per pay period.

5.5 Rest Between Shifts. Short rest overtime pay will now apply when a nurse has been called back from standby!

9.2 Vacation Scheduling. Management has agreed that every department will allow at least 2 nurses off per day and evening shift, and at least 2 nurses on night shift! Even if this commitment means that the Hospital may be short-staffed, nurses need to be able to take time away from work. The Hospital also agreed to make a good faith effort to grant vacation requests so that at least 90% of a nurse’s annual accrued leave may be taken. We also bargained a new vacation request process that will result in more vacation requests being granted. Nurses will make seniority-based vacation requests during two rounds of pre-scheduled appointments in October – November of each year, with rolling requests being awarded on a first-come, first served basis after that.

9.5 Paid Leave Cash Out. Nurses will now be allowed to cash out up to 120 hours of PTO per year (up from 80), and will be allowed to make a request at any point in the year, to be received at any time the following year. Because of the difficulty in taking time off during COVID, nurses will also be allowed a one-time cash out of any hours over 240.

6.12 Floating. Travelers/agency nurses must generally be included in the float rotation, except that specialty units may be excluded on a case by case basis.

6.8.2 Consideration of Seniority. Management must give in-unit applicants priority over non-unit applicants, and prioritize internal candidates over external candidates. Management must now also provide a written explanation when relying upon “skills, competency, and ability” as a justification to bypass the seniority requirement.

6.9.1 Bridging Seniority. For a trial period of one year, nurses’ seniority will be “frozen” for up to 24 months, providing an incentive for nurses who have departed to return.

4.8 Pool Nurse. Pool nurses will be required to work 288 rather than 200 hours per year, and will be required to provide 72 hours of availability per quarter. These changes will help ensure that management is more willing to open pool positions.

8.2 & 4.10 Preceptor. Preceptor pay will increase to $2/hour. New language will require the employer to rely on volunteers to precept whenever possible, make efforts to rotate, offer preceptor classes, and allow any qualified nurse to take the preceptor class – these changes will help ensure that those who wish to be able to precept are given the opportunity to do so.

14.4 Nurse Staffing Committee. New language will ensure that nurses continue to have a strong voice in staffing committee. This includes language requiring the CEO and CFO to attend at least one NSC meeting each year, ensuring that a NSC meeting cannot proceed unless at least half the individuals in attendance are RNs, ensuring that all changes to the staffing plan must be voted on by the committee, and providing that nurses who submit a staffing complaint or are invited to attend a NSC meeting may do so on paid time.

14.5 Workplace Violence Committee. Nurses are now guaranteed two seats on the workplace violence committee, and the employer agreed to post signs promoting its policy of zero tolerance for workplace violence.

11.11.1 Health Insurance Advisory Committee. New language will ensure that nurses have a more meaningful and robust voice on this committee.

5.4.1 Staff Meetings. Staff meetings will be offered online and recorded for later viewing to increase participation.

Vote is being held in-person, Thursday, June 30, in Conference Rooms A and B at CWH,
6:30-9:30 a.m. 11 a.m.-3 p.m. 5-8 p.m.

Questions? Contact WSNA Nurse Representative Carmen Garrison at cgarrison@wsna.org.