About this human kindness we keep seeing ads for….

In the past year, the staffing committee has received 750+ ADOs!

As a reminder, an ADO is a SAFETY CONCERN!

At recent staffing committee meetings, President Monica Hilt proposed staffing cuts and layoffs even though most of us feel as if we’re in the middle of a staffing crisis. In the past few weeks, ED nurses report that only ONE NURSE has been on shift on a few occasions, and even in units that are already short-staffed, your WSNA officers have been told that no job openings have been posted to even attempt to remedy the situation.

In response to VM’s apparent focus on the bottom line and not on top quality, many people came to observe the August staffing committee meeting firsthand, making use of this virtual background to show our unity and demand improvement regarding on-going safety concerns.

For the safety of our patients, and for the safety of each other, we cannot let this trend continue.

Our next staffing committee meeting will be tomorrow, Monday, September 9 at 11 a.m.

Patient safety is NOT optional. Let’s hold Virginia Mason administration to its not-for-profit mission of “improving the health of the people we serve, especially those who are vulnerable, while we advance social justice for all” instead of quietly laying off staff and making cuts that can jeopardize our patients and put our communities at risk. It's time to take a stand.

If you are off work during day shift on Monday:

We need your presence as an observer at the meeting.

Please have your camera on and use this background if you can make the meeting as an observer. Any amount of time that you can give to this will help. You don’t need to stay for the whole meeting.

If you are working night shift Sunday or day shift on Monday:

Wear a "these cuts can kill" sticker for the entirety of your shift and make sure that everyone else on your unit is also wearing a sticker.

Officers and Union activists will be making rounds tonight (Sunday) bringing stickers to the units but they only work if people put them on.

Remember that it is these BIG AND VISIBLE statements of connectedness and support that will make management understand that RNs stand united for patient care and for our own health and safety.

Common Questions:

-Can I wear my sticker at work/in patient care areas?

Yes, in fact, most of us have been wearing WSNA stickers since last fall’s contract campaign. If you can wear/have been wearing any other sticker without a problem, you can also wear this sticker. If asked by a manager to remove it, ask them if not doing so will result in discipline. If no, go ahead and keep wearing your sticker. If yes, remove the sticker and reach out immediately to your nurse representative Sara Frey Sfrey@wsna.org and let her know on what unit you work, who directed you to remove the sticker, and what they said. Pictures (especially those showing your existing stickers) are helpful.

We have heard reports that managers have actually removed some stickers from the bodies of employees. Notify Sara Frey immediately if this has happened to you. We’ll take this moment to remind you of language in our recently negotiated contract:

“The Medical Center recognizes that RNs need to be protected against violence in the workplace from patients, visitors, patient family members and others, and will continue to take steps to ensure the safety of nurses.” First, we consider “others” to include the Medical Center’s own employees; second, we consider unwanted touches to be workplace violence. Your job does not include being subjected to unwanted physical contact by management.

-When and where can I hand out these stickers to my co-workers? 

Any time you can talk with your co-workers about non-work things, you can also talk about union things. Management may not selectively discriminate against union matters if it permits other non-work conversations to occur in the same space. Ask yourself this: does staff pass birthday cards to sign at the nurses station? If the answer is yes, then similar union-focused actions are permitted under the law. *If management tries to craft up complicated justifications to discriminate against union activity* please let your officers or Nurse Rep Sara Frey sfrey@wsna.org know about those justifications. We’re giving out gold stars for creativity. In sticker form, naturally.

Other questions? Please contact one of your local unit officers, nurse representative Sara Frey sfrey@wsna.org or organizer Grace LaMonte GLaMonte@wsna.org.

In solidarity,
Chair - Hannah Collins-Lewis
Vice Chair - Michael Salters
Secretary - Kimberly Travis-Carter
Treasurer - Samuel Asencio
Grievance Officer - Donna Watts
Grievance Officer - Aaron Persinger
Grievance Officer - Kim Adekoya
Staffing Co-Chair – Nicole Vernon
WSNA Organizer Grace LaMonte, glamonte@wsna.org
WSNA Nurse Rep Sara Frey, sfrey@wsna.org