Yesterday afternoon the union had a meeting with the manager of St. Lukes Employee Labor Relations, John Moores to discuss the current and possible effects of the COVID-19 pandemic faced by our members. SLH insists it has no plans for targeted layoffs at this time. A number of workers have been sent home, mostly on voluntary low need (ATO), but some of our members have been mandatorily sent home (MTO). There has been no change to the FTEs or eligibility of benefits for those who are currently being assigned ATO or MTO.
Per St. Luke’s; anyone who is seeing a reduction in their normal work hours is strongly encouraged to file for unemployment. Even if your hours have only been partially reduced, you may still qualify for partial unemployment benefits. St. Luke’s insists it will abide by our contract language when it comes to issuing low need to our members. If you feel that this has not been the case in your department, please let us know as soon as possible.
The company is looking to offer multiple opportunities for cross training in the weeks ahead to maximize the options our members will have. Furthermore, it was also confirmed by St. Luke’s that they will follow the contract language (Section 27.3) that if any of our members who voluntarily accept or are assigned an alternative work assignment will be paid at their regular rate of pay.
Regarding day care challenges, SLH will provide a verification letter to any member who is requesting to use the emergency child care that the schools in Minnesota are providing to the children of essential workers. Also, we were told that in response to this growing need, St. Luke’s is launching a Child Care Match program, a resource for employees to share and respond to child care needs of fellow staff members. The Child Care Match program is exclusive for St. Luke’s employees and their dependent children, not for friends, neighbors, or other relatives.
Another concern the union brought forth was the possible auto conversion of vacation/sick leave to PTO if a member’s sick bank depleted due to this crisis. We proposed allowing members to be able to retain a minimal set amount wit in their bank that would prevent any auto conversion. The company agreed to look into this and the Local will keep you posted on what develops.
We also asked how the situation will be addressed by the company if any of our members acquire the COVID-19 virus while working. We were told that SLH will treat this scenario as a worker’s compensation claim. The union is encouraging our members to contact The St. Luke’s Occupational Health department if you:
1. have a temperature at or above 100.4F (38C), or
2. have cough, sore throat, or shortness of breath, or
3. have had direct contact with anyone in the past 14 days who has been diagnosed with COVID-19 if you were not wearing proper PPE during the period of contact, or
4. have had a COVID-19 test done on yourself, or
5. have attended a public gathering of at least 50 people in the past 14 days when a person at the gathering has been diagnosed with COVID-19, or
6. have been on a cruise in the past 14 days, or
7. have had contact in the past 14 days with someone under investigation for COVID-19 if you were not wearing proper PPE during the period of contact, or
8. have returned from travel in the past 14 days from a trip that included Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Ecuador, India, Indonesia, China, Europe, Iran, Ireland, Israel, Japan, Malaysian, Pakistan, Philippines, Qatar, Romania, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Thailand, Turkey or the United Kingdom. This list is based upon the CDC designation of Level 3 advisory areas. Currently there are no Level 3 areas within the United States.
And finally, if you don’t have a copy of your union contract for whatever reason, let us know and we can send you a digital version by email, or send out a hard copy by snail mail. Just email us at [email protected]