What does it mean to be represented by a union? How does this affect me?

 

If you are represented by a union, your wages, benefits, hours of work and other terms of employment must be negotiated between the employer and your union, and formally outlined in a labor contract. After employees choose a union as a bargaining representative, the employer and union are required to meet at reasonable times to bargain in good faith about wages, hours, vacation time, insurance, safety practices and other mandatory subjects. Some managerial decisions such as subcontracting, relocation, and other operational changes may not be mandatory subjects of bargaining, but the employer must bargain about the decision's effects on unit employees.

 

Who is negotiating my contract?

 

There are three people currently negotiating on behalf of St Joseph Health and Petaluma Valley Hospital (PVH). These people include the Director Of Nursing for PVH, St Joseph Health Attorney, and the Human Resources representative for PVH. There are four negotiators for Petaluma Staff Nurse Partnership (PSNP). These people include the President of PSNP, the Vice President of PSNP, the Secretary of PSNP, and a unit representative.  Any member of the bargaining unit is encouraged to sit in on negotiations, and some union representatives have already done this. If you are interested in sitting in during a negotiation day or would like to become a alternate nurse negotiator please speak to one of your union reps.

 

How long does it take to negotiate a labor contract?

 

There is no way to predict this. Some labor contracts have been negotiated in a matter of weeks while others have taken months to complete. In some cases, negotiations have taken more than a year. Currently St Joseph Health is maintaining that we are starting from scratch and requiring that negotiations include reviewing every article of the current contract.

 

What if St Joseph Health and Petaluma Staff Nurse Partnership cannot reach an agreement on their own?

 

It is an unfair labor practice for either party to refuse to bargain collectively with the other, but parties are not compelled to reach agreement or make concessions.

 

State law requires that a mediator be provided or chosen in order to help assist both parties in reaching an agreement. If after sufficient good faith efforts, no agreement can be reached, the employer may declare impasse, and then implement the last offer presented to the union. However, the union may disagree that true impasse has been reached and file a charge of an unfair labor practice for failure to bargain in good faith. The NLRB will determine whether true impasse was reached based on the history of negotiations and the understandings of both parties.

 

If the Agency finds that impasse was not reached, the employer will be asked to return to the bargaining table. In an extreme case, the NLRB may seek a federal court order to force the employer to bargain.

 

The parties' obligations do not end when the contract expires. They must bargain in good faith for a successor contract, or for the termination of the agreement, while terms of the expired contract continue.

 

How is "good faith" bargaining determined?

There are hundreds, perhaps thousands, of NLRB cases dealing with the issue of the duty to bargain in good faith. In determining whether a party is bargaining in good faith, the Board will look at the totality of the circumstances. The duty to bargain in good faith is an obligation to participate actively in the deliberations so as to indicate a present intention to find a basis for agreement. This implies both an open mind and a sincere desire to reach an agreement as well as a sincere effort to reach a common ground.

The additional requirement to bargain in "good faith" was incorporated to ensure that a party did not come to the bargaining table and simply go through the motions. There are objective criteria that the NLRB will review to determine if the parties are honoring their obligation to bargain in good faith, such as whether the party is willing to meet at reasonable times and intervals and whether the party is represented by someone who has the authority to make decisions at the table.

Conduct away from the bargaining table may also be relevant. For instance if an Employer were to make a unilateral change in the terms and conditions of employees employment without bargaining, that would be an indication of bad faith.

 

At the end of the day...

When it comes to negotiating a contract, it is important as a bargaining unit member that you ask yourself this question: How hard am I willing to fight for a strong contract without takeaways? The hospital can sit comfortably in limbo paying the same wages and conducting the same practices unless we show up together in full force letting them know that we are to be taken seriously. Improved working conditions and terms of employment foster better patient care.

This means safer, happier, and healthier members of our community.

 

 

 

 

 

For more information about Employer/Union Rights and Obligations please visit the National Labor Relations Board Website

A portion of the information provided is from the National Labor Relations Board website and from the University of California Website