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November 16, 1998
HEABC tells Nurses Bargaining Association: Abandon Remaining Workload and Equity Proposals
Yesterday HEABC offered the Nurses Bargaining Association 500 Full Time Equivalent regular positions to be distributed in Long Term Care and the Community, (they did not agree to calling in extra nurses in acute care) and standardization of wages and working conditions for all nurses on the last day of the contract. In exchange, they demanded that we drop our proposals for pay equity, and improvements in on-call and in-charge premiums, car allowance, and shift and weekend premiums.
Partial solutions not acceptable
The BCNU Council and Bargaining Committee decided not to accept the HEABC offer because it provided only partial solutions to our workload and equality problems. And as the Health Employers made dropping our other issues a precondition of continuing bargaining on workload and standardization, both sides left the bargaining table.
HEABC appeared surprised that the Nurses Bargaining Association was not prepared to accept their offer. We explained that many nurses in new certifications have been waiting for standardisation for over a year and that community nurses have been waiting since the summer of 1997 to be brought up to the full provisions of the Provincial Collective Agreement.
On-call and In-charge linked to workload
We also explained the link between on-call and in-charge and workload. When employers decreased full time regular positions, they increased the use of nurses on call for $1 per hour. When employers removed Head Nurses they down loaded some of their supervisory duties onto bedside nurses, and increased their workload by making them in charge for 90 cents per hour.
Equality key concern
We are asking for fair treatment for community nurses who lost their portal to portal car allowance in the melding process even though all the other health care workers who transferred from the public service, health inspectors and members of the BCGEU, CUPE, HSA and the Union of Psychiatric Nurses have been allowed to keep the same provision.
We are convinced that Health Care Employers do not believe that nurses are serious about these issues. It is time to demonstrate your concerns and let them, the public and the government know that we are fighting for Quality Patient Care and Equality for Nurses.
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