The New York State Nurses Association has reached a tentative agreement with the union representing its field staff, officials from both sides said Monday.
The association, a mediator and the United Steelworkers negotiating team, representing approximately 60 members of NYSNA’s Economic & General Welfare program field staff, met for a marathon bargaining session over the weekend, NYSNA spokeswoman Robin Wood said.
Union representative Vickie Longo said the agreement was reached at 1:30 Monday morning. “We reached an agreement that we feel our people will be happy with,” she said.
NYSNA CEO Tina Gerardi said: “I am pleased to announce a tentative agreement that we believe meets the needs of our staff and reflects the values of fairness, equity and fiscal responsibility that have been the hallmarks of our negotiation strategy.”
The union will hold a ratification vote today.
NYSNA has been negotiating a contract for the past nine months with the staff in the Economic & General Welfare program. E&GW is NYSNA’s union arm, serving about 36,000 registered nurses and some other health care professionals represented for collective bargaining purposes at hospitals and other health care facilities around the state.
The contract includes a compensatory time provision that was a major issue for the staff and salary adjustments that fall within NYSNA’s revenue projections for the next three years, which was a major issue for the association.
“As responsible stewards of our members’ money, we feel that this contract is fair and reasonable,” Gerardi said.
Longo had no comment on the tentative terms of the contract, as members had yet to be briefed on the details.
Categories: Business
