Vermont Business Magazine The UVM Medical Center released the terms of its latest contract proposal to theVermont Federation of Nurses and Health Professionals Saturday night. The two sidesmet Saturday andexchanged informal proposals. No deal was reached. During negotiations, according to a hospital statement, the hospital presented a new formal wage proposal outlined below.
The offer calls for a total average base salary increase of 15% over a three year period, with substantially higher wage increases ranging up to 30% for nurses in certain roles. The union’s current proposal is 22% over three years.
The nurse contract expired July 9 and the nurses went on a two-day strike July 12. The union represents 1,800 nurses.
Details of the UVM Medical Center’s proposal include:
- An increase in each of the three years of the contract forRNs/LPNs of 6%/5%/4%. The hospital’s previous proposal called for a 13% wage increase of 5%/5%/3%.
- A minimum of 10% base wage increases for nurses and APRNs who have reached the maximum of their pay range.
- A 12% increase over 18 months for Nurse Practitioners and Nurse Midwives. The hospital’s previous proposal was a 12% increase over three years.
In addition to proposed wage increases, benefits for nurses -- which equal more than 30% of base pay -- will stay the same or improve based on the hospital’s offer. In contrast to what is happening in other industries and organizations, the hospital is not asking for any concessions from nurses. Benefits include retirement contributions, health, dental and vision insurance, life insurance, and paid time off.
“We are hopeful this fair and competitive offer will receive the support of our nurses so we can bring this process to a successful conclusion,” said Eileen Whalen, MHA, RN, president and chief operating officer of the UVM Medical Center.
In its own statement issued Sunday, the union said that "nurses and their allies are planning to attend a public hearing held by the Green Mountain Care Board on Wednesday, August 22nd. Under State statute, the GMCB is responsible for reviewing and establishing hospital budgets in a way that “enhances the patient and health care professional experience of care” and “supports the recruitment and retention of high-quality health care professionals” and the hearing will feature testimony from top administrators in the UVM Health Network."
The union states that, “We are making some headway at the bargaining table and remain committed to getting to a place where our members feel they are being treated as the quality healthcare professionals they are. Hospital administrators say publicly they want an agreement that values its nurses and compensates them fairly. We are holding them to that in negotiations. With executive compensation packages over $2 million, we know UVMMC can afford to fairly pay the people who are at the bedside, providing the high-quality care the hospital prides itself on.”
Nurses are calling for a minimum of $15/hr for all employees at UVM Medical Center, along with "competitive wages capable of ameliorating chronic under-staffing in the hospital and clinics."
The nurses have taken issue with executive compensation at the hospital: Last year, UVMMC spent over $9.5 million on just 12 employees at the hospital, including $2.9 million on two executives, CEO John Brumsted ($1.9 million) and President Whalen ($1 million).
The University of Vermont Medical Center is a member ofThe University of Vermont Health Network, an integrated system established to deliver high quality academic medicine to every community we serve.
Source:(Burlington, VT) The UVM Medical Center8.18.2018.www.UVMHealth.org/MedCenter