Red Book Negotiations #5

We had a very busy week at the bargaining table and want to share an update on our progress. 

On Tuesday, the committee received Essentia’s bundle counterproposal. Given that this was their first comprehensive response after being presented with over a hundred proposals, movement was minimal. We used this opportunity to reinforce the importance of the key issues our members have identified.

We continue to push on the critical priorities including shift differentials, unscheduled shift bonuses, raising health insurance costs, certification pay, and realistic productivity standards. We also emphasized the need for additional safety measures and, most importantly, wages and benefits that are sufficient to recruit and retain high quality staff. The committee brought forward multiple examples of members currently being paid well below market value and made it clear that fair compensation must be addressed. 

Tuesday afternoon was spent refining our proposal- prioritizing the issues that matter most to our members, while presenting a more focused economic proposal. 

On Wednesday, we received another bundle counterproposal. While overall movement remains limited, the committee remains fully engaged and prepared to advocate for every issue brought forward by our members.

On Wednesday afternoon, the committee had a productive sidebar meeting with the lead negotiators for Essentia to further highlight the real-world challenges our members are facing and ensure those experiences are directly reflected in our proposals. 

On Thursday, we began the day by meeting with the lead negotiators to provide clarity on the complexities of holiday floating and fair scheduling around holidays.  

We received Essentia’s third counterproposal, which was a total of two small bundle packages that the union was completely uninterested in.

Over the duration of the week, the negotiating team has made significant movement by laying out our members top priorities. We will continue to hold to our top priorities and reiterate the importance of our membership. 

Thank you again for your continued support and solidarity.