New Contract Overwhelmingly Approved
On October 16th, nurses at Allegheny General Hospital voted overwhelmingly to approve a new two year contract that provides economic security and a focus on patient quality and safety.
Quality and Patient Safety: In a changing healthcare environment that ties funding reimbursement to quality care and patient satisfaction, AGH’s new contract safeguards important patient safety provisions such as:
- Safe staffing levels in departments across the hospital (which including hiring additional staff to help meet the ratios);
- Addressing nurses’ concerns regarding pulling and ancillary staffing;
- New workplace safety committee to examine the issue of workplace violence that nurses confront; and
- New strategic meeting on quality and operations with hospital administrators and union nurse leaders.
Economic Security:Â In the midst of economic challenges nurses approved a contract that:
- Increased wage rates by an average of about 3% immediately for 120 staff nurses to help with retention and equity fairness;
- Provided for raises for all of 2% (July 2014) and 2.25% (July 2015);
- Secured a defined benefit pension and maintained a 403b match; and
- Maintained affordable healthcare coverage with no increases to deductibles.