Nursing home workers With no new contract negotiations scheduled, unionized workers at a Kaneohe nursing home plan to increase their presence outside the facility where they have been handing out leaflets since last month, a union official said.
plan to step up
union action
A UFCW official says there are
no plans to strike at KaneoheBy B.J. Reyes
breyes@starbulletin.com"We are going to escalate our activity," said Pat Loo, president of United Food and Commercial Workers Local 480, which represents 155 employees at Aloha Nursing and Rehab Centre.
"We're continuously hand billing at this point in time. (Tomorrow) we're going to start picketing the facility -- informational picketing that might include, aside from hand billing, regular signs and so forth."
He said there were no immediate plans to strike.
"We're going to continue to do other things rather than disrupt the employment of our people," Loo said.
The UFCW won the right to represent Aloha Nursing workers last year, and negotiations on their first contract began last December.
Charles Harris, executive director of the 141-bed nursing home, said the union rejected the last contract offer on Oct. 25.
"We want to achieve a mutually agreeable solution at the bargaining table, one that is fair and beneficial to employees and management alike," Aloha Nursing management said in a statement. "We call on the UFCW to abandon its pressure tactics and get serious about negotiating."
The union represents a variety of staff members including certified nurse assistants, licensed practical nurses, housekeeping staff, groundskeepers, environmental staff and dietary workers.
Loo said one key sticking point in negotiations has been contract language that would allow the company to subcontract and replace workers at any time, for any reason and not subject to a grievance.
Other issues include salary, health and welfare concerns of employees and access to company property by union officials.