![]() ![]() ![]() Numerous other changes in the agreement include quality-of-life changes and pay increases for nurses who are on standby and must show up to work when requested, as well as nurses whose hours are canceled when patient loads are light. Nurses also argued that the hospital was trying to short-change its nurses by cutting pay for night shift and per diem nurses - a proposal that the hospital later walked back - despite El Camino's strong financial position and annual budget surpluses exceeding $100 million. Among the last-minute changes is the timing for nurses to receive the larger 4% raise, which hospital officials sought to delay until the final year of the contract.ĭuring public demonstrations and at the hospital's board of directors meetings, nurses vented about having to work in increasingly difficult conditions while wages stagnate. Proposals including the longer four-year contract came late in the negotiation process, well after PRN had declared impasse in June. The breakthrough came after both parties agreed to go through a fact-finding process with a hired mediator, which provided a report with recommendations late last month. ![]() A contingency plan was already underway to replace the vital staff in the event of a strike. Though PRN's leadership ultimately declined to call a strike, hospital officials say it's the closest El Camino has been to having its nurses walk out. Negotiations over the new contract had been fraught with challenges dating back to May, when nurses said they'd reached an impasse and held a picketing demonstration, followed by a vote showing overwhelming support for authorizing a strike. "We greatly appreciate the contributions and commitment of our nurses and members of the bargaining team who worked to reach an agreement," according to the statement. PRN representatives were not immediately available for comment. In a brief statement, officials said El Camino Health, which operates El Camino hospitals in Mountain View and Los Gatos, and the Professional Resource for Nurses (PRN) union "worked diligently" to reach an agreement that supports nurses and promotes high-quality patient care. The contract also includes a pay bump for tenured nurses working for up to 25 years at the hospital. The four-year contract, which was ratified by the union membership earlier this week, grants nurses a 3% annual raise for the next two years, followed by a 4% raise in 2021 and another 3% raise in 2022. Photo by Magali Gauthier Previous NextĮl Camino Hospital announced Wednesday that it has reached a contract agreement with its nurses' union, ending months of contentious debate and preventing a disruptive strike by more than 1,200 employees. El Camino Health nurses and medical services employees demonstrated outside the hospital's Mountain View campus on Grant Road on June 11 during a contract dispute. ![]()
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