After a few years of hard-fought back-and-forths with management, the “donning and doffing” settlement and related documents are finally concluded. This update lays out the background, the current status, and the next steps to be taken to ensure that all nurses who are owed a settlement payment get one.

In 2022, FBC nurse and WSNA Co-Chair Emily Nollmeyer filed a grievance over what she identified as an unlawful donning and doffing practice. St. Joe’s practice was a violation of our contract as well as of various laws. Unlawful donning and doffing boils down to the employer effectively requiring nurses to show up early, work off the clock by putting on the employer’s scrubs, and then clock out but work off the clock again when changing out of those scrubs, which is what St. Joe’s had been doing prior to Emily raising the alarm.

Guided by Emily’s tenacity, we arrived at a settlement agreement in which WSNA nurses who worked between October 3, 2019 – February 26, 2023 in L&D and/or Midwifery, or as NICU Charges and/or as NICU Relief Charges are eligible to receive 15 minutes for each shift worked during that time period (15 minutes approximates the time required to don & doff in one shift). That settlement can be viewed here. WSNA and St. Joe’s agreed on a list of eligible nurses, the number of shifts each worked during that period, and how much each nurse would be entitled to. In sum, 215 nurses will receive a total of over $500,000. 

In early January, expect more information regarding what the settlement says, what the waiver states and what it would mean to sign it or not, and how each nurse would learn what the amount they stand to receive is, as well as opportunities to answer any questions or concerns.

If you are in touch with former FBC nurses who may be eligible for a settlement, please help spread the word – we want to be sure that each nurse who is entitled to money gets it, and that means getting ahold of a lot of ex-St. Joe’s FBC nurses.

We know you’ve been receiving a great deal of email from WSNA, but we wanted to get just one more out with this important information after the ink dried on our very successful ratification vote.

Here’s to a peaceful new year that will start off with significant raises and workplace improvements (mad props to FBC nurse Jess Lenczyki for her advocacy on the bargaining team!) and settlement award money justly brought home by Emily’s diligence and commitment to doing what’s right by nurses.

Questions? Contact WSNA Nurse Representative Jared Richardson  at  jrichardson@wsna.org.