Ellis Medicine RNs approve new contract

SCHENECTADY, March 22, 2011– Registered nurses at Ellis Medicine this afternoon approved a new four-year contract that contains stronger provisions to monitor and address their staffing concerns. The 670 RNs are represented by the New York State Nurses Association.

The new agreement extends the scope of the current Joint Staffing Committee to review staffing on a unit-by-unit basis to let management know of concerns identified by staff nurses and devise ways these issues can be addressed. This committee will have the right to review staffing plans and make recommendations. The contract also creates subcommittees to further investigate staffing issues for each specific unit.

Other provisions of the agreement:

Management will be required to conduct a more timely review when RNs protest assignments and give an accounting of actions taken to address RNs’ concerns.
Throughout the agreement, RNs will receive wage increases that depend on their years of experience.
The percentage of management’s contribution to the RNs’ health insurance premiums will also increase.

The Nurses Association believes the contract will help to create an atmosphere that fosters group decisions through cooperative relationships to assure that Ellis RNs continue to have the ability to provide quality care. The contract is retroactive to March 1, 2010, and runs through Feb. 28, 2014.

The New York State Nurses Association is the voice for nursing in the Empire State. With more than 37,000 members, it is New York’s largest professional association and union for registered nurses.The association represents registered nurses, and some all-professional bargaining units, in New York and New Jersey. It supports nurses and nursing practice through education, research, legislative advocacy, and collective bargaining.

- 30 -