Summit Pacific Medical Center - Bargaining Update

Our Bargaining Team is working hard to make sure that everyone has competitive wages and a fair and equitable place to work!

We have provided Summit with wage charts from many other area hospitals and clinics. We have discussed the cost of living and how competitive pay is for jobs in the area. Management has said they are listening and understand how recruitment and retention works. Our last bargaining session, management came to bargaining and told us why competitive wages are important to Summit's success.

WE AGREE! It's what we have been saying all along.

We all need to make enough money to pay bills and support our families.

Summit will be expanding soon and we know this means better service to our community. Management needs to understand that we are part of this community and we need to be paid fair wages.

OK Summit Management, it's time to put money in people's pockets.

Our next bargaining session is Friday, November 8.We hope that management will be ready for us.

Bargaining Team:Kimberly Starkweather, Allison Felder, Monica Ortiz, Barb Ford, Judea Prouty, Kurt Phillips.

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Summit Pacific Medical Center - Bargaining Update

We have been bargaining for several weeks. Summit management has been receptive to our proposals, but we have not reached agreement on wages and other economics. We have reviewed the wages of several local hospitals with management to show them how much workers need to be paid for Summit to be competitive. We have discussed the high cost of living and management is speculating that the cost of living will level out. Although they have acknowledged what other employers are paying for the same jobs, management has not committed to paying competitive wages at Summit. We are continuing to advocate for wages that will be competitive and sustainable.

Our next bargaining session is scheduled for September 9.
 
For more information contact a member of our Bargaining Team: Kim Starkweather Patient Coordinator, Allison Felder RN ED, Monica Ortiz RN ACU, Barb Ford ED Tech, Judea Prouty Medical Assistant, McCleary Clinic, Kurt E Phillips Lead Building Engineer.

Union Representatives: Kiambo White (206) 436-6515, Madison Derksema (206) 436-6603

"Management is hearing our concerns and has been somewhat responsive."

— Barb Ford

"We are collaborating and hope to come to agreement soon."

— Kimberly Starkweather

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Summit Pacific Medical Center - Bargaining Update

Our bargaining Team met with SPMC management Friday and received their initial economic proposal. The proposal included increases to wages, premiums and differentials.

Management provided lists of the wages paid at neighboring hospitals and clinics and made a proposal to try to bring us closer to those facilities. The data they provided did not include wages from contracts that have been recently ratified.

We are reviewing the accuracy and effective dates of the wage scales that SPMC used for their comparisons, to figure out how they determined the proposed increases. Our bargaining team questioned management about the accuracy of their information and management seemed interested in making sure the data they are using is up-to-date.

We are working on a counter proposal and will present our data on wages and other compensation.

It is important that SPMC fully understands our goals for this contract. We need to be competitive to retain current employees and recruit new ones.

Next bargaining dates: August 12 and 19.

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For more information contact a member of our Bargaining Team: Kim Starkweather Patient Coordinator, Allison Felder RN ED, Monica Ortiz RN ACU, Barb Ford ED Tech, Judea Prouty Medical Assistant, McCleary Clinic, Kurt E Phillips Lead Building Engineer.

Union Representatives:
Kiambo White (206) 436-6515
Madison Derksema (206) 436-6603

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"Management is being very receptive and open to feedback."

— Judea Prouty, MA, McCleary Clinic

"They're willing to meet us and are looking at data that shows them where we need to be."

— Monica Ortiz, RN

Summit Pacific Medical Center - Bargaining Update

Our Union Bargaining team met with management and gave them a powerful message that we all need to feel valued at work. Strong equity language has been proposed for the contract. Management needs to understand that we are important to the success of the organization. Everyone needs to feel physically and emotionally safe at work. We made proposals that allow workers to bring concerns to management without fear of retaliation. We have heard that often one-on-one meetings with management feel unfair, so we are making proposals towards a more collaborative process.

The cost of living has gone up significantly, and Summit needs to keep up with other local hospitals. We have assessed the competition and are getting ready to give economic proposals to management during upcoming bargaining sessions.

Our next bargaining session is Friday, July 12.

For more information, contact a member of our Bargaining Team:

Monica Ortiz, RN ACU

Allison Felder, RN ED

Kim Starkweather, Patient Coordinator

Barb Ford, ED Tech

Judea Prouty, Medical Assistant, McCleary Clinic

Kurt E. Phillips, Lead Building Engineer

Summit Pacific Ratifies First Contract

On Thursday, we ratified our first contract with UFCW 21! It was great to see our coworkers turn out to support this first contract that guarantees wage increases and other economic improvements. More importantly, we now have the protection of a union contract and can hold management accountable.

The Bargaining Team and your Union Rep have paper copies of the contract and wage scales if you were unable to make it to the vote.

Fill out your Membership Application

Join our Union by filling out your membership application! join.ufcw.org/join/21

Thanks you for all your support through this process!

Your Bargaining Team: Angi Swinhart, Barbara Ford, Jessee Bednarik, Michael Granstrom

Summit Pacific Medical Center - Vote Date and Time Scheduled— Bargaining Team Unanimously Recommends a YES Vote!

After close to a year of bargaining, we have finally reached a recommended tentative agreement on a contract with UFCW21. Thank you for all of your support throughout this process. All that remains is the final step of voting. 

Come vote for your contract! 

Thursday, June 10

• 10 AM - 12 PM

• 2 PM - 4 PM

• 5 PM - 7 PM

Elma Grange 26
401 W Waldrip St
Elma, WA 98541

These are drop-in times when voting will be open. You will have the opportunity to review the full document when you come to vote. We will have COVID safety precautions in place to make sure we all stay safe while voting in person.

For our first contract (3 year duration) we won:

• Respectful wage increases each year of the contract

• Increases to many premiums, and new premiums for some job classifications

• Just Cause and a fair grievance procedure to handle contract disputes

• Creation of a Labor Management Committee to address ongoing issues in between bargaining cycles

• Clear, enforceable definitions of practices for seniority, pay, scheduling, hours, leaves, and more

• The right to join and participate in your union free from retaliation

Details of the agreement will be available from your bargaining team members as we finalize our documents. The full document will be available at the vote.

Your Bargaining Team: Angi Swinhart, Barbara Ford, Jessee Bednarik, Michael Granstrom

Summit Pacific Medical Center - Tentative Agreement Reached—Bargaining Team Unanimously Recommends a YES Vote!

After close to a year of bargaining, we have finally reached a recommended tentative agreement on a contract with UFCW21. Thank you for all of your support throughout this process. All that remains is the final step of voting.

For our first contract (3 year duration) we won:

• Respectful wage increases each year of the contract

• Increases to many premiums, and new premiums for some job classifications

• Just Cause and a fair grievance procedure to handle contract disputes

• Creation of a Labor Management Committee to address ongoing issues in between bargaining cycles

• Clear, enforceable definitions of practices for seniority, pay, scheduling, hours, leaves, and more

• The right to join and participate in your union free from retaliation

Details of the agreement will be available as we finalize our documents. A vote announcement with details of time, date, and location will also be out soon via email and on our website, www.ufcw21.org. 

Your Bargaining Team: Angi Swinhart, Barbara Ford, Jessee Bednarik, Michael Granstrom

Summit Pacific Medical Center - Getting Closer!

Our Bargaining Team met with Management Wednesday and bargained into the night. We were able to make a lot of headway on our outstanding issues. Just a few issues remain including:

• Daily Overtime

• Unpaid time off in certain circumstances

• Grievance and arbitration process to handle contract violations

We were ready and willing to come to an agreement Wednesday night, but Management has said that they need to review our proposals further. We are eagerly awaiting a response from them so that we can move to voting on a fair contract for workers. 

Your Bargaining Team: Angi Swinhart, Barbara Ford, Jessee Bednarik, Michael Granstrom

Summit Pacific Medical Center - Progress with Meditation but Major Issues Still on the Table

We had another productive mediation session on Wednesday where we were able to narrow down our economic package. However, management still has some proposals on the table that we don’t agree with:

» Denying longevity increase if you have received discipline in the last year

» Limiting the cases we can take to arbitration to only terminations

» Overreaching management rights clause

These topics are critical to a fair union contract. We are working to schedule our next mediation session to hear a response from management.

YOUR BARGAINING TEAM: Angi Swinhart, Barbara Ford, Jessee Bednarik, Michael Granstrom

Summit Pacific Medical Center - Progress with Mediation

We had our first mediation Friday with Management and a PERC mediator. We were able to have good discussions and come to agreement on some outstanding non-economic issues. We reached tentative agreements on:

• Feedback (Evaluations)

• Union Bulletin Boards

• Job Postings

• Introductory Employee (Probation Period)

• Department Orientation

There’s still a lot of hard work ahead. We have not yet discussed economics with the mediator, and we are still awaiting Management’s response to our last economic proposals. Our next mediation date is March 24.

“It’s good to see progress with the mediator. Now we can really focus in on our economic issues and win a fair contract.”

—Your Bargaining Team

Your Bargaining Team: Angi Swinhart, Barbara Ford, Jessee Bednarik, Michael Granstrom

Hear more about how mediation went at our Contract Action Meeting this Thursday @ 7PM!

Thursday, March 18
7:00 PM

Summit Pacific Medical Center - RSVP to a Contract Action Meeting

Join our Bargaining Team at a Contract Action Meeting on Thursday, March 18 @ 7 PM to hear the latest bargaining update and how we can support our fight for a fair contract.

RSVP for the Zoom information

Thursday, March 18
7 PM
Contact your Bargaining Team or Union Rep for call-in details. Details will be also emailed out.

Click HERE for the CAT Meeting RSVP

Our Bargaining Team:
Angi Swinhart- RN, Clinic; Barbara Ford- ED, HUC; Alicia Wood- RN, ED; Jessee Bednarik, RN, ED; Michael Granstrom, ED Tech

Summit Pacific Medical Center - Mediation Dates Scheduled

We have scheduled dates for mediation to continue our negotiations. We will be meeting with Management and a mediator on March 12 and March 24. The mediator can help us come to resolution, but their recommendations are non-binding. We will still get to vote on our contract. We are still open to receiving a response from Management before mediation.

We are happy to welcome our newest bargaining team member, Michael Granstrom! 

“I joined the Bargaining Team to do my part in bringing this negotiation process to a resolution by helping to produce a fair contract that benefits our community, our staff, and our hospital district.”

—Michael Granstrom

Your Bargaining Team: Angi Swinhart, Barbara Ford, Jessee Bednarik, Michael Granstrom

RSVP to Our Contract Action Meeting!

Thursday, March 4
7:00 PM

Summit Pacific Medical Center - Summit Pacific Finally Gives COVID Hazard Bonus

Our Bargaining Team has been sharing our stories for months at the bargaining table of what life is like on the front lines of this pandemic. Over the last two months, we’ve also been sharing our stories with Summit’s Board of Commissioners.

Summit has finally agreed to offer a one-time COVID Bonus on the March 19, paychecks based on hours worked in 2020.

• $1000 if you worked 1560 hours or more in 2020

• $500 if you worked 520-1559 hours in 2020

We are still waiting on dates for mediation to continue our negotiations with Management. Join us at our next Contract Action Meeting on Thursday, March 4 at 7PM. RSVP for details.

If you have any questions, please contact a Bargaining Team member or your Interim Union Rep, Alex Gallo-Brown @ 205-490-8334, agallobrown@ufcw21.org

Your Bargaining Team: Angi Swinhart—RN, Clinic; Barbara Ford—ED HUC; Jessee Bednarik—RN, ED

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RSVP to Our Contract Action Meeting!

Thursday, March 4
7:00 PM

Summit Pacific Medical Center - Bargaining Moves to Mediation

“I took the leap to join our Bargaining Team to fill in for our team members that have been pushed out by Management. Like a lot of you, I have many commitments outside of work, but this is important. We deserve a fair contract with better pay and to be treated with respect by Management.”

— Your newest Bargaining Team member, Jessee Bednarik (RN, ED)

Last Friday, we responded to Management’s latest economic proposals. We have made fair compromises to focus in on our core issues of wages, pay equity, staffing and PTO. Unfortunately, Management does not think we have compromised enough and they told us they will not be making any more economic proposals to us at the bargaining table.

What does Mediation mean?

An impartial mediator will be assigned by the WA-Public Employment Relations Commission (PERC) to help both sides define our issues, explore solutions, and reach a mutual agreement. The mediator can help us come to resolution, but their recommendations are non-binding. We will still get to vote on our contract.

“We are disappointed in Management’s decision to put up roadblocks in this process. We are open to mediation and any path to a fair contract for Summit Pacific workers.”

— Your Bargaining Team member, Barb Ford

Did you see our letter in the Daily World?

Summit Pacific Medical Center - The Employer Produces Another Shameful Economic Response

“The frustrating thing is that we are proposing a fair economic package and Summit doesn’t want to even meet us at our reasonable demands.” 

— Angi Swinhart, Clinic Resource RN

On Friday, January 22, the employer made many flip-flop arguments regarding current policy; it seems like when it is financially beneficial to them, they’d like to stick to current policy, yet when it benefits employees, they’d like to get rid of it. For example, SPMC would like to deny pay raises to employees they issue discipline to, which they justify by citing existing policy; yet they also want to eliminate paid lunches for ED RN’s which has long been standard practice at SPMC. 

Other highlights from last Friday include:

Education Leave—The union has proposed to expand paid educational leave for Tech and Service, but the employer continues to reject this proposal.

“I would think SPMC would want to support and encourage their staff to move up the ranks especially if they plan on working within the organization.” 

— Bailey Walczak, BSN, RN, DNP-S

Wages—the Employer produced another shameful wage proposal which is nowhere near area competitor’s wages with minimal movement to slightly increase Hospital RN’s wages and only in year one of the three-year deal. Most employees would only see a 4.5% increase over the course of 3 years in the employer’s most recent proposal, well below what most other area hospitals have been offering.

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“We are the employees that go into the trenches with these patients and put our health and safety on the line for this company. We are what makes Summit Pacific what it is. Many of your employees are scared to express how they feel and how disconnected they feel administration is. Stop stalling on fair and doable changes!” 

—Mandy Jo, Ultrasound Tech

We are still asking for you to join us at our next board of director’s meeting and to share our stories; this has been a powerful way to make sure our voices are heard and will help hold the administration accountable. 

Join Us Thursday, January 28 

@ 6PM (via Zoom) 

Contact your Bargaining Team or Union Rep for call-in details. Details will be also emailed out.

Even if you can’t attend the board of director’s meeting, share your stories here:

Summit Pacific Medical Center - Union Bargaining Team Holds the Line

Our Bargaining team is standing firm on a number of issues that Management wants us to bend on.

We’re fighting for:

• Educational Leave for Tech/Service

• On call pay comparable to surrounding hospitals

• Two hours’ notice if you don’t need to report to work

• Increasing PTO Accruals to account for holidays

• Creating one PTO Cap for all employees

• Allowing Cert pay for Tech/Service

• Double time for violation of rest between

On Wages, we have held at our earlier proposals. Today we drew a line in the sand about Management saving money by drawing out our bargain.

We have proposed that wage increases be effective January of 2021—no matter how long it takes us to ratify a contract!

Our Bargaining Team: Angi Swinhart—RN, Clinic; Barbara Ford—ED HUC; Alicia Wood—RN, ED

We’re still collecting stories about what matters to you in this contract. Contact our Bargaining Team so we can tell your story at the table!

Summit Pacific Medical Center - Major Progress in Friday's Bargaining Session

On Friday, January 8, we got the employer to agree to several lingering issues.

• Recognition

• Preceptor Definition

• Non-Discrimination

• Union Security

• Union Access and Stewards

• Disciplinary Meetings & Personnel Files

• Low Census

• Seniority

• Leave without Pay

• Committees: Labor Management Committee, Nurse Staffing Committee, Safety Committee

• Innovative Work Schedules

• Schedule Posting

• Health Tests

• Duration of the Contract

• Split Shift Protections

• AND MOST IMPORTANTLY our renewed COVID-LOU; agreed to through the end of June 2021. Employees will not be required to use PTO for quarantine! Employer will now provide exposure information to members and the union. Minimum orientation requirements for float assignments.

“We started the new year off strong with a productive bargaining session!” 

– Barb & Alicia 

Major Issues still on the table! Sick leave, PTO, Wages, grievance procedure, bulletin boards, benefit eligibility

Your involvement is CRITICAL for our success at the table and winning a strong contract!

Help Us Win at the Bargaining Table! Share Your Stories:

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For more information, discussion, and ideas on how to get more involved - Come to the CAT Meeting! 

Thursday, January 14
7:00 PM

Summit Pacific Medical Center - Community Petition Delivered to the Board of Commissioners!

On Friday, December 18, one of our community members and union supporters presented a petition of support for our bargain with 105 signatures from our community.

Our Bargaining Team spoke at the meeting as well about safety and wage concerns at Summit.

We plan to continue sharing our stories at the table and at future board meetings!

At the bargaining table we got more of the same from Management. They continue to claim they want to recognize people who go above and beyond, but instead of offering incentives for folks who do good work, they’d rather permanently punish anyone they might arbitrarily discipline for any reason.

Our Bargaining Team: Angi Swinhart—RN, Clinic; Barbara Ford—ED HUC; Alicia Wood—RN, ED

Summit Pacific Medical Center - Bargaining Team Fighting for All Workers

This Friday, we reached a tentative agreement on establishing our Labor Management Committee (LMC). This is a group of members that will meet at least quarterly with Management to address issues that come up between bargaining cycles. If you’re interested in joining any committees where we have won seats for union members, please let your rep, Nicholas, know.

The union is fighting for compensation for those of us who go above and beyond and receive additional education and certifications, but administration is denying our proposals to recognize exceptional skills and abilities. For example, they do not include tech/service workers in proposals around educational leave and certification pay. Our Bargaining Team will not back down.

Our Bargaining Team: Angi Swinhart—RN, Clinic; Kristen Frazer—Registration Specialist; Barbara Ford—ED HUC; Alicia Wood—RN, ED

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Our fight also continues to increase our PTO accruals to account for holidays. Share your story on how current PTO levels have impacted you. Your stories make a difference at the bargaining table!

Join an Emergency Contract Action Meeting on Wednesday, December 16!