Wednesday, Feb. 8, members of the Oregon Health & Science University and Oregon Nurses Association bargaining teams met virtually for negotiations and exchanged proposals and counterproposals.   

Proposals 

This week the ONA team shared two new proposals: 

• Article 20 – Layoff and Recall, including an expanded definition of restructure, adding the opportunity to offer changes in FTE equitably across shifts, and shortening the timeline for implementing approved FTE changes from six months to 90 days. 
• Article 24 – Resource Nurses, including allowing holiday hours worked for any reason to count toward resource nurse holiday requirements, increasing the differential for resource nurses who work 36 hours or more, and adding notice for resource nurses not on track to meet their work requirements. 

OHSU provided a lengthy counterproposal on Article 6 – Employment Practices for ONA’s consideration. This counterproposal adopted ONA’s requested expansion of non-discrimination categories; agreed to provide guidance and meetings on earnings statement codes; and posed changes to the overpayment and underpayment process. OHSU’s proposal included the addition of eliminating base wage reduction as a form of discipline for nurses and a new process for reporting paycheck errors.   

In its proposal, OHSU maintained current contract language around contracting out, which includes the opportunity for ONA to request to bargain over contracting out work that is presently and regularly performed by bargaining unit nurses. During the discussion of this item, ONA expressed its concern that traveler nurses are being valued over OHSU-employed nurses.    

In response, OHSU shared its perspective that supplementing staffing with traveler nurses, while not ideal, is necessary given the nationwide nurse shortage in order to serve OHSU’s patients and to provide support to OHSU nurses for their wellbeing. OHSU also discussed that its incentive package, proposed in Session 6, gives OHSU nurses the opportunity to work above their FTE to the extent wanted for a significant premium. 

Tentative Agreement 

The parties did not reach tentative agreements this session. OHSU asked about reaching agreement on Article 18 – Seniority, which the parties seemed very close on last week. ONA is considering whether it can tentatively agree on this article. 

Going forward 

The parties are meeting again virtually next week, Feb. 15, for the last of six consecutive weekly bargaining sessions. OHSU committed to have responses to ONA’s proposals on Articles 20 and 24.  ONA shared that it hoped to have proposals on Article 7 – Hours of Work and a new article on Staffing.