As Possible Strike Looms, Negotiations Between St. Charles Nurses And Hospital Management Resume: Union

PORT JEFFERSON, NY — As a strike looms, the nurses' union at St. Charles Hospital says there was progress at the bargaining table in a long session on Thursday, and they are eager to get back to the table when negotiations resume on Monday, the New York State Nurses Association said.

Dozens of nurses marched to St. Charles Hospital President James O’Connor’s office last week to notify him that they will strike July 13, unless management negotiates a fair contract that delivers safe staffing and fair wages, according to union officials.

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O’Connor "stepped in to prevent bargaining committee members from attending the planned session" on Friday, the union said.

O’Connor broke standard practice and refused to release union members from their scheduled shifts at the hospital, and as a result, negotiations had to be rescheduled for Monday, according to the union.

Patch has reached out for comment.

Bargaining committee members will be released from work on Monday and ready to negotiate.

Committee member Kim Bowman describes safe staffing as "an urgent issue" and that negotiating a fair contract "ensures safe staffing must be a priority for St. Charles management."

"We are ready and willing to bargain as often and as long as it takes to reach a fair agreement that guarantees safe staffing for our friends, families, and neighbors who depend on our hospital for quality care," Bowman said.

In a statement to Patch last week, the hospital's executives acknowledged they received the notice.

"The notice does not mean a strike will occur, and NYSNA may withdraw it at any time," they said. "While we are disappointed by this step, our immediate priority is clear: St. Charles will remain open and prepared to care for our patients if a strike occurs."

"We have a comprehensive contingency plan in place to maintain safe, high-quality care and minimize disruption to the community," they added.

They went on to say that they will continue "to value our nurses and the important role they play in caring for our patients."

"St. Charles has bargained in good faith for months and has put forward proposals that support our nurses, patients and hospital, including competitive compensation and benefits, a defined benefit pension plan, professional development opportunities and a continued commitment to safe staffing and high-quality care," they said. "We remain ready to continue negotiations and urge NYSNA to stay at the bargaining table so we can reach a fair agreement and prevent a strike."

More than 99 percent of nurses voted to authorize a strike, after nurses bargaining for months with "enforceable safe staffing has been the key sticking point in negotiations," the union stated in a news release.

Hospital administrators "continue to frequently understaff nurses, even after nurses filed hundreds of complaints to enforce the safe staffing standards in their contract, a state Department of Health investigation found nearly 200 violations of the safe staffing law, and the hospital signed an agreement committing to hire and staff more nurses," the nurses' release stated.

In May, nurses compiled 244 unresolved staffing complaint, which is the most complaints of any month in the 18 months since the state began its investigation, the nurses union said.

"St. Charles hospital executives are flouting New York’s safe staffing law, the staffing standards in the nurses’ contract, and putting patient safety at risk," they stated.

"With safety conditions seemingly deteriorating instead of improving, nurses are prioritizing a contract that helps them hold the hospital accountable for safe staffing to protect safe patient care."

Nurses also allege St. Charles' management is treating them unfairly and that the union has filed an unfair labor practice charge against the hospital for refusing to release the corrective actions they will take to resolve the staffing violations that the health department found, as well as trying to silence nurses’ voice at work, according to the union.

In response to the union’s claims about staff-to-patient ratios, the hospital's executives said in a statement that "contrary to the union’s claims, patient safety and quality care have not been — and will not be — compromised."

"We maintain a thoughtful, ongoing staffing review process focused on supporting patient safety and quality care that has earned us Leapfrog 'A”'grades and a five-star CMS rating," they said. "If a strike occurs, St. Charles will remain open and operational and will continue to provide excellent, safe, high-quality care to the community."

The nurses are among around 1,000 Catholic Health nurses at three hospitals currently negotiating contracts.