Seattle Children’s: Take care of the nurses who take care of Seattle’s Children!

Picket at Seattle Children’s Hospital
August 9 (0600-0900, 1200-1500)

Bring the nurses you work with, your family, friends, and neighbors. Let management know they have to do more and do better by their nurses.

What’s an informational picket? Nurses march, carry picket signs, and hand out leaflets on the public sidewalk in front of the hospital, to amplify our concerns to Children’s leadership and to the community.

Why are we picketing? WSNA nurses at Children's Hospital are picketing to communicate the issues we have at the table with the public. We are at the point where we need to take greater, more visible actions to show our strength, our seriousness, and our solidarity to Children’s leadership and to the public. The more we stand together, the more power we give to our bargaining team at the table.

Is it similar to a strike? No. SCH nurses continue to go to work and we are not asking nurses to stay home. Staff scheduled to work should go to work. Patients scheduled for care should go and get their care. If you are working, you are free to come join the picket line before or after your shift, or on your break.

Is it legal? Absolutely. It’s not just legal, it’s our right as a union member! And it requires all nurses’ participation to be successful!

Who can picket? Everyone. By everyone, we mean EVERYONE: you (all RNs, full-time, part-time, per diem, probationary nurses) your family, your friends, your neighbors, your colleagues, and your pets!

Why involve the community? We serve and advocate on behalf of our community every day. The issues we are dealing with directly impact them. They not only need to hear but will understand and support why we are concerned about the lack of staffing and Children’s inability to recruit and retain nurses.

How can I help? If you are scheduled to work, go to work. Join the line before/after a shift, on breaks/lunches. If it’s your day off, it is critical that you join the line, and ask your friends and family to walk the line with us.

I can’t be there the whole time, though. Come when you can! We’ll be there from 0600-0900 and from 1200-1500. Come before you clock in, come after you clock out, come on your break, come on your lunch (and if you can’t get relieved to take a break or lunch fill out an ADO!).

Can I get in trouble if my manager doesn’t like it? No, in fact, it is illegal for managers to question or discipline any nurse for talking about or participating in an info picket. The National Labor Relations Act explicitly protects participation in this type of union activity.

Is this on paid time? No. Nurses participating in the informational picket will do so on their own time.

I live far away, though… Too many nurses have to live far away from the hospital because we can’t afford to live in the communities we serve. This is one of our biggest demands at the table: pay nurses enough to be able to afford to work at Children’s! No one wants to commute that far, especially on a day off, but by showing our strength on the picket line, we bolster our power at the table and improve our chances to win a contract that benefits all nurses.

What about child care? Bring your children! A picket line is an energetic, safe, fun place to use outdoor voices to express our demand for better working conditions so that more nurses come to work (or stay working at Children’s) so we don’t have to pick up as much overtime and extra shifts and can afford to be with our families more!

But why do I have to sign the picket pledge? We need to know which departments and shifts are getting information about bargaining and about the picket and where we need to concentrate more attention to get the greatest outreach.

If you want a copy of the picket pledge for your area or need to sign it, contact Nurse Rep Travis Elmore Nelson at telmore@wsna.org.

We are stronger together. Send Children’s the clear message that WSNA nurses are done being undervalued, disrespected, and discounted.