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Representatives from the Saskatchewan Union of Nurses (SUN), the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA), and the Saskatchewan Association of Health Organizations (SAHO) met to continue discussions on August 11, 12, 13, and 14.
During this past session, SUN’s Negotiations Committee took crucial steps to ensure that balanced, evidence-based solutions were put forward on all remaining priority issues. Significant headway was made in getting through outstanding pieces of language on both sides, including Article 6.15 which ensures that new members are getting the orientation they are entitled to receive, in a timely manner, and within an agreed upon timeframe. This provides new members with foundational information and awareness of the supports they are entitled to through their union and as defined in the collective agreement. The Committee also had some discussion in other areas such as Articles 6, 7, 9, addressing Charge Pay, and Return for Service language. The majority of the more challenging discussions continued to focus on the issue of mobility in relation to Article 26 and 45, along with casual work in relation to Article 37.
Mobility of SUN members remains a core issue that needs to be addressed in a manner that is workable for all parties involved. This issue is showing up in two ways. First, the issue of mobility attached to our float language under Article 45 and SAHO’s efforts to reduce barriers to allow the Employer the ability to float members within a facility or outside of their facility. Our current language limits float assignments outside of a facility unless there are emergent circumstances. Emergent circumstances does not include “Chronic staff shortages, vacation, incidental sick leaves or leaves of absence” as outlined in our current language. SAHO wants that definition removed to allow floating in those instances. This will impact all SUN members and their ability to care for patients within the facility and position they applied for. The second issue related to mobility is the importance of ensuring members in community positions have reasonably sized geographic areas so they will be able to provide safe, timely patient care rather than spending prolonged periods of time travelling long distances. The potentially expansive geographies that SAHO is looking to implement, will limit community nurses’ ability to provide direct care to a greater number of clients within a shift.
Another particularly concerning aspect of the mobility conversation is the continued lack of transparency and clarity on the new areas that SAHO wants to put in place. This reluctance to define parameters or geography is occurring while efforts are being made to remove our current “mutual agreement between the Union and the Employer” language if a position will be responsible for more than three units or three work areas. While SAHO deems this as too restrictive, SUN’s Committee feels that the current mutual agreement language protects members from having to cover unusually large areas of the province without discussion and agreement. It is vital for members to have options, clarity about their work and where it will take place, and to feel supported in their efforts to provide safe care to their patients within a reasonable timeframe.
A crucial item that still requires some dedicated focus to work through is Article 15, Vacation. Members have repeatedly indicated that accessing vacation leave has become incredibly difficult and more problem-solving is required to create options and periods where vacation could be accessed. This is important so that members have the opportunity to have some balance, alleviate mental and physical stress, keep patients safe, and remain in the workplace, and the profession, long term. To date, SAHO has responded that the current vacation language works well and there are not issues with our members accessing their vacation leave.
Additionally, SUN’s Committee put forward the concept of a Nurse-to-Patient Ratio Committee as a positive first step on the topic. Ratios that ensure the appropriate staffing complement that meets the needs of the patient population, are currently being both discussed and implemented in a number of provinces across Canada. While further conversation is needed due to SAHO not providing a counter proposal on the subject, prioritizing safe patient care and better outcomes for both patients and nurses is in the interests of all parties, and functions as an effective approach to attract and maintain registered nurses in the province.
While there is still some minor clean up of language to be done, all of SUN’s non-monetary proposals are now on the table, leaving what should be a relatively short path to monetary conversations. SUN continues to problem-solve, consider the interests and challenges of all parties, and develop language with the broader goal of supporting members, enhancing their ability to care for their patients, and stabilizing the nursing workforce in Saskatchewan.
SUN’s Committee looks forward to renewing discussions on September 1st and remains hopeful that some movement and compromise can lead the remaining non-monetary discussions as we then move as quickly as possible to monetary items.
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