{"id":654,"date":"2021-11-19T00:32:54","date_gmt":"2021-11-18T23:32:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/monblogeur.tech\/index.php\/2021\/11\/19\/uw-nurses-take-to-facebook-to-demand-union-collective-bargaining-rights-uw-badger-herald\/"},"modified":"2021-11-19T00:32:54","modified_gmt":"2021-11-18T23:32:54","slug":"uw-nurses-take-to-facebook-to-demand-union-collective-bargaining-rights-uw-badger-herald","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/monblogeur.tech\/index.php\/2021\/11\/19\/uw-nurses-take-to-facebook-to-demand-union-collective-bargaining-rights-uw-badger-herald\/","title":{"rendered":"UW nurses take to Facebook to demand union, collective bargaining rights &#8211; UW Badger Herald"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"cfbc967f0983488262956e73eca9483a\" data-index=\"1\" style=\"float: none; margin:10px 0 10px 0; text-align:center;\">\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-3859091246952232\" crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- blok -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\" data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-3859091246952232\" data-ad-slot=\"1334354390\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\r\n\n<\/div>\n<p><span class=\"hrld-media-credit\"><span class=\"hrld-media-credit-name\"><a href=\"https:\/\/badgerherald.com\/author\/acima\">Abby Cima<\/a><\/span><span class=\"hrld-media-credit-org\">\/The Badger Herald<\/span><\/span><br \/><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Citing poor staff-to-patient ratios, low salaries and an unsafe work environment, dozens of University of Wisconsin Health nurses have taken to Facebook with the hashtag <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/hashtag\/whyuwnursesneedaunion\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">#whyuwnursesneedaunion<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> demanding a union.<\/span><br \/><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">UW Health nurses lost their union in 2014 when the UW Hospitals and Clinics Authority used the Act 10 law to refuse renewal of their contract, according to <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.unionvoiceatuwhealth.org\/q-a\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">UnionVoiceatUWHealth.org<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Since then, things have gotten worse, UW nurse Nicole Wayman said.<\/span><br \/><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8220;I would say since then things have progressively gotten more difficult for nurses,&#8221; Wayman said. &#8220;I feel like each year we lose one more benefit or one more thing that used to really draw people to UW to want to work as a nurse at UW.&#8221;<\/span><br \/><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Wayman said UW nurses are understaffed and as a result, patient care has decreased. Having a union would help provide higher salaries and more benefits \u2014 things that would attract more nurses, Wayman said.<\/span><br \/><a target='_BLANK' class='snippet inline' href='https:\/\/badgerherald.com\/news\/2021\/11\/03\/medical-cannabis-research-shows-great-potential-but-still-faces-barriers\/' rel=\"noopener\"><img class='thumbnail' src='https:\/\/badgerherald.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/weed-3-345x225.jpg' \/><span class='title'>Medical cannabis research shows great potential but still faces barriers<\/span><span class='excerpt'>Recent studies on the use of medical cannabis provide differing evidence regarding the benefits or risks of the drug in <span class=\"more\">Read&#8230;<\/span><\/span><\/a><br \/><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">UW Health is facing a nationwide shortage of nurses but is faring better than other hospitals, according to a UW Health <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.uwhealth.org\/news\/uw-health-confronts-national-nursing-shortage\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">press release<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. UW Health has a current nurse turnover rate of 10% \u2014 compared to the national average of 17% \u2014 and some of the best staff-patient ratios in the nation, the press release states.<\/span><br \/>\u201cThe pandemic has certainly added stress and high patient volumes to health systems,\u201d UW Health Chief Executive Nurse Rudy Jackson said in the press release. \u201cBut we are working hard to address the staffing needs in several ways.\u201d<br \/><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Still, UW Health has around 300 nurse openings as of October 2021, according to the press release.<\/span><br \/><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">UW nurses have lost benefits as a result of the union disappearing, Wayman said. Four months ago, UW Children\u2019s Hospital piloted mandatory overtime. This was very unpopular among nurses and especially difficult for single mothers who had to find more child care.<\/span><br \/><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Since UW nurses lost their union, collaboration between upper management and the nurses has disappeared, UW Health nurse Aaron Signer said.<\/span><br \/><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8220;[Since the union disappeared] it&#8217;s been really hard,&#8221; Signer said. &#8220;The collaboration has kind of gone away. It&#8217;s more of an adversarial [relationship] between management and the nurses.&#8221;<\/span><br \/><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Former Gov. Scott Walker passed <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/docs.legis.wisconsin.gov\/2011\/related\/acts\/10\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Act 10<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in 2011. The legislation made it harder for public sector unions to stay organized and capped the raise they could bargain for to no higher than the consumer price index, according to <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wpr.org\/decade-after-act-10-its-different-world-wisconsin-unions\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Wisconsin Public Radio<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><br \/><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Signer said the UW Health administration uses Act 10 as an excuse to not negotiate with a union or talk to the nurses. But some labor lawyers have said it is legal for the UW Hospitals and Clinics Authority, known as UWHCA, to recognize the UW nurses as a union and begin negotiations, Signer said.<\/span><br \/><a target='_BLANK' class='snippet inline' href='https:\/\/badgerherald.com\/news\/2021\/11\/02\/2-5-million-awarded-to-dane-county-continuum-of-care-to-combat-youth-homelessness\/' rel=\"noopener\"><img class='thumbnail' src='https:\/\/badgerherald.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2005\/04\/homeless_dm_416-280x140.jpg' \/><span class='title'>$2.5 million awarded to Dane County Continuum of Care to combat youth homelessness<\/span><span class='excerpt'>After four years, the Dane County Continuum of Care and its community received a $2.5 million Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program <span class=\"more\">Read&#8230;<\/span><\/span><\/a><br \/><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">UW Health is currently working with both an employee relations consultant and a legal expert to determine what is legal under Act 10, UW Health press secretary Emily Kumlien said<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in an email to The Badger Herald. <\/span><br \/><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Kumlien cited <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/wisconsinexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/20agard_msk_Leg-Council-Memo.pdf\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">a recent Wisconsin Legislative Council opinion<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> that found while the UWHCA can not formally recognize a union for collective bargaining, hours or conditions of e<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">mployment, employees can informally &#8220;meet and consult&#8221; with UWHCA to discuss such topics.<\/span><br \/><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWhile the UWHCA Board of Directors has on rare occasions received direct and unsolicited presentations, including from this group &#8230; t<\/span>he intent of the board is to align with the UW Board of Regents policy in the hopes of thoughtfully and efficiently conducting health system business,\u201d Kumlien said.<br \/>Kumlien said individuals with interests they would like to bring before the board are welcome to send in written submissions to help inform board actions and decisions.<br \/>The UWHCA Board said in a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uwhealth.org\/news\/statement-of-the-uwhca-board-of-directors-on-nursing-and-workforce-w\">statement<\/a> they would appoint a governance committee on staffing issues to consult with management and schedule special meetings to hear more from nurses.<br \/>&#8220;The Board agrees with management that there is opportunity for improvement in two-way communication between UWHCA employees and management, including Shared Governance for nurses,&#8221; the statement said. &#8220;The Board acknowledges the work that UWHCA management has done to date to actively engage with its nurses and other employees to address concerns.&#8221;<br \/><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">UW Health declined multiple requests for a live interview.<\/span><br \/><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Some alders on city council claimed in a press release that UWHCA has discouraged attempts to reform a union, citing last month rejection of a nurse&#8217;s request to add a discussion about forming a union to their Oct. 28 agenda. Instead, UWHCA spent a significant portion of the closed session talking to an anti-union consultant, according to a Madison Common Council <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cityofmadison.com\/news\/madison-common-council-alders-sound-alarm-that-uw-health-has-launched-an-immoral-anti-union\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">press release<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><br \/>City Council alderpersons Lindsay Lemmer and Patrick Heck said in the release that UW Health has created an &#8220;immoral and aggressive anti-union campaign against nurses which could undermine the safety and quality of patient care.&#8221;<br \/><a target='_BLANK' class='snippet inline' href='https:\/\/badgerherald.com\/news\/2021\/11\/01\/madison-community-members-highlight-need-for-crime-prevention-addressing-systemic-issues\/' rel=\"noopener\"><img class='thumbnail' src='https:\/\/badgerherald.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/DJI_0154-345x225.jpg' \/><span class='title'>Community members highlight need for crime prevention, addressing systemic issues after MPD crime report<\/span><span class='excerpt'>The Madison Police Department reported a decrease in crime this summer, from May 24 to Aug. 16, after implementing numerous <span class=\"more\">Read&#8230;<\/span><\/span><\/a><br \/><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Before 2014, UW nurses were a part of Service Employees International Union Healthcare Wisconsin, according to UnionVoiceatUWhealth.org.<\/span><br \/><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If UW nurses were to rejoin that union, they would be able to elect colleagues who would negotiate contracts and give a voice to nurses, according to their website.<\/span><br \/><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cIf I were to have a union, I think it would afford me a voice in how I can continue to give the best care that I did [and] I think the people in the community deserve,&#8221; Wayman said. &#8220;I think having a union would solidify UW as being a remarkable place to work giving remarkable care to the people who come see us.\u201d<\/span><br \/><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Though many nurses have chosen to leave for higher-paying positions in Madison, Signer said he plans to stay at UW Health.<\/span><br \/><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI&#8217;m probably 10 years from retirement and I want to see this through and leave this hospital a better place than it is right now,&#8221;\u00a0<\/span>Signer said. &#8220;That&#8217;s why we&#8217;re in the middle of the fight.\u201d<br \/><em>This story was updated on Nov. 18 at 10:45 a.m. to correction Aaron Signer&#8217;s name from &#8220;Singer.&#8221;<\/em><br \/>This article was published Nov 17, 2021 at 5:10 pm and last updated Nov 18, 2021 at 10:44 am<\/p>\n<p><span id=\"email-notes\">Your email address will not be published.<\/span> Required fields are marked <span class=\"required\">*<\/span><br \/><label for=\"comment\">Comment<\/label> <textarea id=\"comment\" name=\"comment\" cols=\"45\" rows=\"8\" maxlength=\"65525\" required=\"required\"><\/textarea><br \/><label for=\"author\">Name <span class=\"required\">*<\/span><\/label> <input id=\"author\" name=\"author\" type=\"text\" value=\"\" size=\"30\" maxlength=\"245\" required='required' \/><br \/><label for=\"email\">Email <span class=\"required\">*<\/span><\/label> <input id=\"email\" name=\"email\" type=\"email\" value=\"\" size=\"30\" maxlength=\"100\" aria-describedby=\"email-notes\" required='required' \/><br \/><label for=\"url\">Website<\/label> <input id=\"url\" name=\"url\" type=\"url\" value=\"\" size=\"30\" maxlength=\"200\" \/><br \/><input id=\"wp-comment-cookies-consent\" name=\"wp-comment-cookies-consent\" type=\"checkbox\" value=\"yes\" \/> <label for=\"wp-comment-cookies-consent\">Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.<\/label><br \/><input name=\"submit\" type=\"submit\" id=\"submit\" class=\"submit\" value=\"Post Comment\" \/> <input type='hidden' name='comment_post_ID' value='289954' id='comment_post_ID' \/> <input type='hidden' name='comment_parent' id='comment_parent' value='0' \/> <br \/>UW-Madison&#039;s Premier Independent Student Newspaper<br \/>All Content &copy; The Badger Herald, 1995 &#8211; 2021<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/badgerherald.com\/news\/2021\/11\/17\/uw-nurses-take-to-facebook-to-demand-union-collective-bargaining-rights\/\">source<\/a><\/p>\n<!--CusAds0-->\n<div style=\"font-size: 0px; height: 0px; line-height: 0px; margin: 0; padding: 0; clear: both;\"><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Abby Cima\/The Badger HeraldCiting poor staff-to-patient ratios, low salaries and an unsafe work environment, dozens of University of Wisconsin Health nurses have taken to Facebook with the hashtag #whyuwnursesneedaunion demanding a union.UW Health nurses lost their union in 2014 when the UW Hospitals and Clinics Authority used the Act 10 law to refuse renewal of [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"googlesitekit_rrm_CAow1sXXCw:productID":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-654","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-non-classe"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/monblogeur.tech\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/654","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/monblogeur.tech\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/monblogeur.tech\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/monblogeur.tech\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/monblogeur.tech\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=654"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/monblogeur.tech\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/654\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/monblogeur.tech\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=654"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/monblogeur.tech\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=654"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/monblogeur.tech\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=654"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}