FL MORRIS / FMORRIS@STARBULLETIN.COM Nurses from Kaiser Hospital voted yesterday in a strike authorization vote at the HSTA building in Moanalua. Barbara Blake, a nurse at Kaiser's Orthopedic Clinic, left after voting.

Nurses at Kaiser
take strike vote

Staffing, wages and benefits are the
main issues in negotiations

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By Rosemarie Bernardo
rbernardo@starbulletin.com

Unionized nurses at Kaiser Foundation Hospital in Moanalua began voting yesterday on whether to authorize a strike.

The nurses are represented by the Hawaii Nurses Association, which is negotiating new contracts with Kaiser and four other hospitals in Honolulu; Queen's Medical Center, Kapiolani Medical Center, St. Francis Medical Center and Kuakini Medical Center.

Three-year contracts between the HNA and the hospitals expire on Nov. 30. Kaiser nurses continue voting today, while nurses at the other hospitals are expected to vote by Wednesday. Shuttle buses carried the Kaiser nurses from the Moanalua medical center to the Hawaii State Teachers Association headquarters just up the hill yesterday where they cast their ballots.

A yes vote would give the union the authority to issue a 10-day strike notice. Negotiations between the union and Kaiser resume on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, officials at Kaiser as well as Queen's and Kapiolani medical centers have asked the federal mediator to become involved in the negotiations.

Kaiser Foundation Hospital has proposed a five-year contract. However, the HNA wants a three-year agreement to remain on the same cycle as the other four hospitals, said Kaiser nurse negotiator Jean Shea.

The Kaiser nurses can vote to approve the contract offer or reject it and authorize a strike.

"This is ridiculous of how they're treating us," said Jocelyn DeMello, 48, a registered nurse at Kaiser.

"Who takes care of the patients?" asked DeMello.

The HNA says there are three main issues in the negotiations: safe staffing, wage progression and retiree medical benefits.

"I had given 25 years to the hospital. I can't live on the retirement they're offering me. I'd starve," DeMello said.

Sue Scheider, director of collective bargaining for the HNA, said management at Kaiser has refused to implement safe staffing and retiree medical benefits in the contract.

Kaiser spokesman Chris Pablo contended that though it's not stated in the contract, medical benefits are provided for retirees who are age 65 and have served at least 20 years at Kaiser Foundation Hospital.

Scheider said there has been movement involving wage progression.

Shea said nurses at Kaiser hospitals in California recently negotiated a four-year contract that provided a 27-percent hourly wage increase, to $41 an hour.

Kaiser nurses in Hawaii now earn between $28 and $29 an hour.

"We would like to come close to some of the wages. But we don't have any expectations of having those wages," Shea said.

HNA labor relations specialist Cherie Raymond said, "We would be willing to go on strike if necessary."

Pablo said, "We feel that a strike is not in the best interest of all of us, especially our patients."

A strike may require Kaiser officials to postpone surgeries and divert patients to other hospitals, which is not practical "because other hospitals may be facing strike," he said.

"I'm confident we will reach a settlement as we have done so many times in the past."

More than 2,500 nurses are represented by the HNA at the five hospitals.