Island Health and WSNA Reach Tentative Agreements on Several Contract Items

Island Health and the Washington State Nurses Association (WSNA) met for our sixth bargaining session on October 16. We want to share what we accomplished and where discussions continue, so our nurses, our staff and our community have a clear picture of the process.

Tentative agreements reached

• Political Action Committee (PAC): We agreed that nurses may elect to contribute to the WSNA PAC through payroll deductions. WSNA agreed to give Island Health up to one year to implement the system for processing these deductions.
• Conference Committee: We agreed to allow seven nurses to serve on the conference committee, which will address issues as they arise during the life of the contract.
• Meal and Rest Breaks: We reached agreement on meal and rest break waiver language.
• Lactation: Island Health’s existing lactation room already meets all the protections and requirements WSNA asked for, with one exception: it did not have a refrigerator. After our initial discussions on this language, we asked Engineering to add a refrigerator to the space, and that work is underway. The agreed language reflects these provisions. 

Workplace violence prevention
The safety of our nurses, staff and patients is a top priority. Island Health provided substantial language on the Workplace Violence Prevention Committee (WVPC) that aligns with WSNA’s requests. We have not yet finalized this article, and we appreciate WSNA’s engagement.

One area remains unresolved: WSNA has asked for weapons detection systems at every hospital entrance, which Island Health cannot agree to because they have not been shown to reduce violence and would carry substantial equipment and staffing costs. Instead, we have offered targeted measures, including a weapons surrender program and additional training for our security staff, that we believe will do more to keep our people safe. We remain open to continued discussion.

Mediator for economic negotiations
Island Health has requested a mediator to assist with economic negotiations. Because a mediator must be scheduled, the bargaining session originally planned for October 20, has been postponed. 

Next steps: Our next collective bargaining session is October 26. We will continue to share updates as negotiations move forward.

Thank you to our nurses, staff and community for your continued dedication to our patients and to one another. We remain committed to reaching a fair agreement and will keep you informed along the way.