The LOU preserving the benefits of the Unit Schedulers has been ratified by the nurses of the WSNA bargaining unit. Congratulations RNs!

The tentative agreement reached titled “Letter of Understanding: Unit Schedulers” will now ensure our WSNA nurses have this personal connection and benefit for the coming months! You can view and download the final LOU from the local unit web page.

The new transition to Symplr has been less than perfect and the bumps in the road continue. We want our valuable nurse to have accurate information at their finger tips to help dodge the curveballs with the new system. Recently, an RN noticed when being low censused she did not accrue PTO for her low census hours as the contract allows. Because of this, she reached out to WSNA, and the issue was escalated. We have been told a nurses must enter “LC Unpaid” if they want to get PTO credit while on low census. If a nurse enters “LCV Unpaid” this code does NOT allow nurses to accrue PTO. If you have by chance, entered in the wrong code, and did not accrue PTO hours while on LC please let us know ASAP so we can help get this corrected for you.

PeaceHealth’s threat to cancel employees’ health insurance if they go on strike will now get a hearing for an unfair labor practice. Region 19 of the National Labor Relations Board issued a complaint against PeaceHealth over these threats. The Region 19 complaint came after its investigators found merit to an unfair labor practice charge filed by the Washington State Nurses Association in late 2023. A hearing is scheduled for Nov. 12, 2025.

WSNA filed the unfair labor practice in October 2023 after PeaceHealth’s statements to employees and the media during a strike at PeaceHealth Southwest in Vancouver and PeaceHealth St. John in Longview.

The strike was organized by the Oregon Federation of Nurses and Health Professions, which represents more than 1,700 techs, janitorial employees, and others at both facilities.

During the strike, PeaceHealth threatened to pull health benefits from striking employees, citing the move in statements to the press as its “standard practice that applies to any caregiver (union-represented or not.)”

“This was a blanket statement that covered all employees, including WSNA-represented nurses, their coworkers in other unions, and unrepresented workers alike,” said Kelly Skahan, labor counsel at WSNA. “We couldn’t let this threat go unchallenged.” In its filing, WSNA said that PeaceHealth had violated Section 8(a)(1) of the National Labor Relations Act, which prohibits employers from interfering with, restraining or coercing employees in their exercise of protected rights.

WSNA argued that the threat to revoke health insurance from any striking worker could reasonably chill protected activity by giving workers the impression they will lose their health benefits if they exercise their protected rights.

Do you know your rights in an investigatory meeting?

We have prepared an investigatory interview guide for WSNA union members.

Use this link to open the document. Understanding your representation rights - WSNA

Protect yourself and know your rights.

Not getting WSNA emails? No fear, we can fix this for you! Email Jaclyn Smedley BSN, RN at jsmedley@wsna.org and we will get it resolved.