EHMC Denies Reasonable Negotiations Schedule

Below is John O’Dea’s response to the Union’s request to schedule a reasonable work and negotiation schedule. Call him and tell him the difference between ‘office workers’ work and nurses’ work.

Alice,

Thank you for providing those dates for Ms. Mallen. She will be added to the schedule.

With respect to your request to change our upcoming negotiation dates, Englewood does not agree to any changes. Englewood has arranged for every member of the HPAE negotiating team, barring some unforeseen circumstance, to be available to attend each negotiation session. We are ready, willing and able to negotiate, in good faith, on the dates agreed upon by both parties. If the Union wishes to cancel any of these dates, we will do the best we can to negotiate a new agreement using those remaining dates.

Despite the outlandish claims made in your email, I fail to see the issue with how HPAE negotiating team members are scheduled. Further, there is no “unprecedented” edict. Nobody on the HPAE negotiating team is scheduled to either work their regular shift or attend negotiations more than five days in a row. The majority of those who are scheduled to work five days in a row have the weekend off as part of their regular schedule, which gives them plenty of time for relaxation. As someone who works (at least) five days in a row every week, I cannot fathom how such a schedule “surpasses any reasonable condition.” In fact, one of your negotiating team members regularly works a five-day-a-week schedule, and she seems to do just fine.

The CBA states that Englewood will pay four (4) team members from the bargaining unit to attend negotiation sessions. I reviewed the schedules for all the HPAE negotiation team members and see that there are multiple HPAE negotiating team members (six or seven on the majority of days) on the schedule every day negotiations are scheduled. As I stated above, absent some unforeseen circumstance, all of these team members will be released to attend negotiations – yourself included.

I am surprised and disappointed that the Union is taking the position that certain members of the HPAE negotiating team would rather kick back and relax than attend our agreed upon negotiating sessions. You write of a “mandate” from the membership for your team members to negotiate, but how seriously can you take this mandate if you ask to cancel almost half of the negotiation dates during the upcoming schedule? It is perplexing that HPAE would take the position that working and/or attending negotiation sessions five days in a row puts the negotiating team in jeopardy in any way. The entire Englewood negotiating team is planning to work five days a week, at a minimum, while we negotiate a new agreement and we aren’t in any jeopardy. It is disappointing that the union does not share that sentiment. Please let me know if you wish to cancel the negotiation dates scheduled for 4/21, 4/28 and/or 5/7. We are not scheduled to negotiate on 5/15, so there is nothing to cancel.

Thanks,

John

John O’Dea,

I am in receipt of your email concerning the scheduling of negotiation sessions. Needless to say, we vehemently disagree with the content of your email. Frankly, we are amazed and saddened at the depictions of how you believe nurses’ work. We are amused by your characterizations of how the work of office workers compares to the work of nurses. Having said that, we are glad that the office workers can have plenty of relaxation time on the weekends.

Please be advised that the Union will not jeopardize our ability to fully evaluate, examine, and in every aspect prepare for negotiating a new contract. The following dates are cancelled April 21, April 28, May 7, and May 14.

Alice Barden

In solidarity,

Local 5004 Executive Board