Nurses, hospitals begin contract talks

By Dan Nakaso
Advertiser Staff Writer

Union negotiators representing 2,500 nurses began meeting with the first of Hawai'i's five largest hospitals yesterday in contract talks covering issues ranging from staffing levels and pay to how much say nurses will have in patient care.

Talks began at The Queen's Medical Center and Kapi'olani Medical Center yesterday and move to Kaiser Foundation Hospital today, followed by Kuakini Medical Center tomorrow and St. Francis Medical Center Oct. 31.

Each hospital bargains separately, but all have three-year contracts with the nurses that expire Nov. 30.

Among the issues in this year's contract talks will be pay, with union officials expected to ask for more money as well as a pay scale that rewards experience.

Nurses' pay varies by hospital but ranges from $26 an hour to more than $29 an hour, said Sue Scheider, director of the Hawai'i Nurses Association. But, Scheider said, a nurse with only two years' experience makes the same pay as a nurse with 20 years' experience in the same job at the same hospital.

"It's outrageous," she said. "It's an insult to a nurse's professionalism."

Officials from Queen's and Kuakini responded to requests for comment yesterday. Queen's has the most nurses, with more than 800. Kuakini, with more than 200 nurses, employs the fewest.

"The Queen's Medical Center looks forward to these discussions and we believe they will be amicable," Gail Tiwanak, Queen's vice president of marketing and communications, said in a written statement. "Maintaining high-quality patient care, nurse retention and professional practice remain top priorities for the hospital."

The union also wants to amend language in each of the five contracts that requires nurses to work overtime, if necessary.

"Now, after a full, 8-hour shift, the hospitals can require somebody to stay over and work another full shift, 16 hours straight, with no warning," Scheider said. "It really does happen. ... Kuakini has been ... relying on mandatory overtime to fill gaps in their coverage that they know of in advance."

Kuakini spokeswoman Donda Spiker said yesterday that the issue will be part of the negotiations. "We're not going to address things specifically. We don't want to bargain in the media," Spiker said.

The union also wants to retain language in four of the five contracts that mandates nursing staffing levels to be determined by a combination of factors — such as the type of patient care needed and patient-to-nurse ratios — that were developed by the American Nurses Association, Scheider said. The language also gives nurses a say in patient care, Scheider said.

Union negotiators now want the same language included in their Kaiser contract, Scheider said.