RICHARD WALKER / RWALKER@STARBULLETIN.COM
Striking nurses at Wahiawa General Hospital walked the picket line today at the hospital's main entrance on Lehua Street.
Wahiawa nurses strike
Health insurance hike
is main beef of Wahiawa
Hospital nurses
More than 60 nurses at Wahiawa General Hospital went on strike at 7 a.m. today.
Contract talks between the Hawaii Nurses Association and the hospital reached an impasse on Wednesday, and there have been no negotiations since.
A recent hike in employee health insurance contributions is the major sticking point for nurses, said Randy Pisani, a recovery room nurse and member of the negotiating team.
Walking the picket line, Pisani said monthly contributions for family coverage were hiked from $74.48 to $147.18 for full-time nurses March 1 and from $138 to $215 for part-timers. Half the Wahiawa nursing staff is part-time, said Pisani.
To make matters worse, said fellow picketer Cora Soriano, the hospital didn't warn workers about the jump. "For most of the nurses it's the medical, it went up 100 percent," said Soriano, who has been at Wahiawa for 9 years. And the increases were a surprise in their paychecks, she said.
Wahiawa General originally had 65 nurses before contract negotiations began, but three nurses submitted their resignation yesterday after management rejected the union's last offer, according to Sue Scheider, director of collective bargaining for the HNA.
RICHARD WALKER / RWALKER@STARBULLETIN.COM
Striking Wahiawa General Hospital ICU nurse Ella Siroskey waved to a honking motorist today near the hospital's emergency entrance on Kilani Avenue.
Soriano said striking nurses were determined to stick it out, but surprised it had come to this.
"We never thought that we were going to go on strike because we are a small hospital, a community hospital," she said. In the past, nurses have volunteered for fund-raisers to support their employer, she said. "We know its a small hospital. That's why we help out."
Richard Aea, spokesman for Wahiawa General, said adjustments have been made for nursing supervisors and personnel from ancillary services to care for patients in the emergency room, outpatient services and long-term care units during the strike.
"Wahiawa will still maintain its high standard of patient care for our community at all times," Aea said.
The union has established a strike headquarters at the home of nurse Tina Fernandez at 1721 Eames St.
About 45 nurses went there yesterday for briefings and to make strike signs. Scheider said an "overwhelming majority" of those who showed up had voted for the strike under the circumstances.
Registered nurse and negotiator Cindy Guerin said, "A bunch of doctors have been coming up to the nurses and trying to make some of the nurses feel guilty for striking, saying that we could cause the demise of the hospital.
"Our demands are not half the demands of other hospitals," she said.
Nearly 1,400 nurses at Kuakini Medical Center, St. Francis Medical Center and the Queen's Medical Center went on strike from early December to mid-January. On Jan. 16, nurses at Queen's ratified a new contract that gives them a 21 percent wage increase over three years.
Nurses at Kuakini ratified a new contract on Jan. 10 that gave them a 20 percent raise over three years, and nurses at St. Francis ratified a new contract on Jan. 19 that gave them an 18 percent raise over three years.
KEN IGE / KIGE@STARBULLETIN.COM
Marie Zahar, left, Nora Valle and fellow Wahiawa General Hospital nurses attended a meeting yesterday at nurse Tina Fernandez’s house in preparation for a possible strike today.
Wahiawa General has offered its nurses packages that include up to a 19 percent pay raise over three years, but the nurses say the increase will be eaten up by the hike in health insurance premiums.
The nurses are also looking for an increase in retiree medical benefits, increased safety provisions and longevity steps that call for them to be rewarded for their continued service at the hospital.
"The nurses at Wahiawa have been very flexible. They want something in the ballpark, and they want to keep experienced nurses at Wahiawa," said Scheider.
Aea said, "We're looking for an amicable resolution."
Wahiawa resident Jeff Taniyan and his girlfriend, Stacey Pabro, welcomed the birth of their son, Gavin, who was born at the hospital Saturday.
A couple of days before Pabro gave birth, Taniyan said, a nurse recommended that the couple go to Kapiolani Medical Center to have their baby. Taniyan, whose family has been going to Wahiawa General for years, refused and said he wanted to have their baby at the community hospital.
Taniyan said he supports the nurses and their requests for a better package.
"Everybody has bills. They have families to take care of. ... If I was in their shoes, I would want all that," he said.
Wahiawa nurse Pisani, who has been at the hospital 11 years, said the picket lines will be manned from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. in two six-hour shifts.
The union didn't think it was safe to have nurses walking the line late in the evening, she said.
