The FBC nurses delivered their petition to President Jennifer Schomburg and the new CNO Andrew Baxter on Thursday, August 31, 2023. The petition was signed by 97% of the FBC nurses in addition to FBC providers, FBC staff, and other nurses throughout the hospital. They also provided copies of several ADOs as supporting evidence that described serious patient safety concerns, faulty equipment, and missed breaks.

Jennifer and Andrew took the petition, the ADOs, and listened to the moving stories the nurses told that   illustrated the points in the petition. The nurses also tactfully articulated they know both Jennifer and Andrew do have the power to correct the problems identified in the ADOs and petition and are hopeful they will do just that.

We have heard from nurses in other units curious about how this unit was able to do this when there are staffing problems in their unit too. The FBC nurses are organized. They have close to 1 WSNA Unit Rep for every 10 RNs on their unit and work closely with their FBC lead WSNA Local Unit officer. They used this structure to successfully coordinate their efforts.

The work they did and are continuing to do is terrific. Our goal is to have every unit organized with this same structure. The stronger each unit is the stronger the entire bargaining unit becomes. If you would like more information about how to make your unit stronger, please contact any of your WSNA Local Unit Officers or Nurse Rep Barbara Friesen bfriesen@wsna.org

In Solidarity,
WSNA Local Unit Officers: Matthew McGuire, Emily Nollmeyer, Sally Budack, Shannon Suchland, Shelly Mead, Yunna Flenord, Carina Price, Rachel Watcher

Nurse rep Barbara Friesen bfriesen@wsna.org