Unit 17 Bargaining Updates Archive

Nurses sign 17 tentative agreements, win improved RN supervision language

Updated 2:00 p.m., January 15
The Registered Nurses of Unit 17 reached tentative agreement on 17 articles yesterday. This came on the heels of a package proposal received from the state on Tuesday.

"For the first time, the state actually came to negotiate with Bargaining Unit 17," said Nancy Lyerla, Bargaining Unit 17 chair.

Language covering RN supervision was one of the 17 tentative agreements reached.

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State shows up but 'sits on hands'
No more bargaining for Local 1000 nurses until January

Updated 4:00 p.m., November 24
Unlike other bargaining units, where the state has refused to negotiate because a Local 1000 attorney was in the room, the state brought an attorney to a bargaining session with our Registered Nurses (Unit 17) on Friday.

But it was not a very productive meeting and it left our bargaining team frustrated.

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The state's attacks on RNs adds insult to injury

Updated 4:30 p.m., November 18
The state continued to attack the professionalism of state nurses at the Unit 17 bargaining table.
 
The state's first attack was aimed at CDCR RNs when they proposed to completely eliminate the RN's right to secure specific assignments based on seniority.

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Nurses win safety improvements
Personal alarms to be tested daily in institutions

Updated 6:15 p.m., September 20
Our Nurses in hospitals in the departments of Mental Health and Developmental Services won a big victory Thursday as the state agreed to begin testing personal alarms every day.

The state and our bargaining team for nurses in Unit 17  signed a tentative agreement to settle our longstanding issues over safety at state-run hospitals where we care for the mentally ill and developmentally disabled.

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Registered nurses continue to push for bargaining priorities while state balks at safety and shift change issues

Updated 10:45 a.m., September 9
Our Registered Nurses of Unit 17 were at the bargaining table August 26, and continued to push four key priorities: combating inappropriate supervision of RN’s by non-RN’s; improving fairness of the post and bid system; more restrictions of mandatory overtime; and pay equity.

As with other units, state negotiators resisted improving contract language affecting the personal safety of members. Talks bogged down when the state insisted that whistles were actually “transmitters” and a safe and reliable substitute for electronic personal alarms.

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Registered nurse priorities at the bargaining table

Through seven bargaining sessions at our Registered Nurse bargaining table, the state has continually rejected our core proposals. Our Registered Nurse bargaining team is committed to winning improvements on top issues identified by state RNs. Those key issues include:

Salary Inequities - Increase salaries for RNs in the Departments of Health Care Services, Public Health and Education, to keep pace with increases won for nurses in other state agencies.

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Nurses sign deal on shifts, schedules

Updated 4:30 p.m., August 18
Our Nurses (Unit 17) signed two tentative agreements last week, including important new language to protect workers from having their shifts changed for punitive reasons.

The new language requires management to notify nurses in writing 15-30 days in advance of all shift changes. Managers are also forbidden from changing a nurse’s shift in order to avoid paying overtime.

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Registered Nurses testify about recruitment and retention issues

Updated 4:15 p.m., July 29
The Registered Nurses of Unit 17 returned to the bargaining table Monday.

Three registered nurses, representing the Department of Health Care Services and the Department of Public Health testified about the exodus of nurses from state services and the recruitment and retention issues that are causing them to leave.

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Two big wins for nurses & health care workers

Updated 4:00 p.m., July 16
Two big victories affecting thousands of Local 1000-represented nurses and health care workers were announced last week: an arbitrator found that the state violated our contract by denying prison health care employees equity adjustments; and, Governor Schwarzenegger signed a pay parity bill (AB 3043) that will give raises to nurses and other health care professional workers in three key departments.

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State signs our plan to help nurses
New committee to help state retain registered nurses

Updated 10:00 a.m., July 17
The Department of Personnel Administration (DPA) agreed Wednesday to our proposal to work together to retain and recruit more registered nurses for state agencies and take the load off members who work mandatory overtime.

“This will help us address critical issues for our members who are in departments where we are forced to work overtime,” said Nancy Lyerla, chair of the Registered Nurses (Unit 17) bargaining team. “We are ensuring that registered nurses will have a voice in the staffing issues that affect our members.”

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Unit 17 presses state on nurse equity

Updated 4:45 p.m., June 24
Our Unit 17 nurses signed four tentative agreements and pressed the state on proposals for pay equity for several groups of public health nurses and nurse evaluators. But like other units, our team bumped into resistance from state negotiators who cited California’s ongoing budget woes. 

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Unit 17 signs 10 tentative agreements

Updated 11:45 a.m., June 23
Our Unit 17 negotiators met for a full day on Saturday and signed 10 tentative agreements with the state, including measures affecting bereavement leave for all members and vacations for registered nurses in two departments. The two sides also discussed the state’s practice of placing nurses under the supervision of administrators who lack the proper medical credentials and mandatory overtime for nurses in some the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and the Department of Mental Health—no agreement was reach on either issue.

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Unit 17 & state sign 10 tentative agreements

Updated 11:00 am, June 17
Our Unit 17 negotiating team reach tentative agreement with the state on 10 contract sections Monday, and presented a package of economic proposals.

“My concern is equity adjustments for health services nurses,” said Beverly Church, nurse evaluator II with the Dept. of Health Care Services. “Our negotiators gave the state a package proposal that includes equity increases for three classifications—nurse evaluators, health facility evaluator nurses, and nurse consultants—covering hundreds of employees.”

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Unit 17 signs 25 tentative agreements

Updated 10:30 a.m., June 13
In the big first day of negotiations, our Unit 17 bargaining team and the state signed 25 tentative agreements on Thursday.

The tentative agreements extend a wide range of hard-won benefits earned in the past, including reimbursements for continuing education, license renewal fees and immunization. The state also agreed to grant up to one year of unpaid educational or research leave for full-time, permanent Unit 17 nurses.

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