[U]niversity of Vermont Medical Center employees held a news conference outside the McClure building Wednesday with members of the Vermont Workers’ Center and local and state politicians as the nurses enter the final contract negotiations sessions with the hospital.
Laurie Aunchman, a nurse at UVM Medical Center and acting president of the Vermont Federation of Nurses and Health Professionals, said that it is time for the hospital to bring in more nurses.
“So far, the proposals of the hospital have been less than optimal,” Aunchman said of the negotiations.
The exact proposals could not be specified, as the negotiators agreed to keep the discussions private, according to the University of Vermont Medical Center negotiating team.
The hospital has paid more than $1 million in worker compensation for work-related injuries, Aunchman said. She and other speakers are asking that the hospital assign enough nurses to maintain a safe working environment.
The nurses are also asking for higher wages so the hospital can “recruit and retain” the best possible nursing staff, said Shannon Lyons, a nurse practitioner at UVMMC. The hospital’s nursing wages rank in the bottom 10 percent nationally, she said.
“We are looking for a wage that is respectable for the work that we do,” Lyons said.
Whenever the hospital has turnover, it costs $22,000-$65,000 to replace a nurse, Rep. Diana Gonzalez, P/D-Winooski, said.
Max Tracy, a Burlington city councilor, supports an increase in staffing, especially as the hospital builds a new inpatient facility.
“It’s one thing to have shiny new buildings in a newly branded hospital, but it’s wholly another to have that be a sustainable change and a sustainable transition,” Tracy said.
Rabbi Joshua Chasen and Sen. David Zuckerman, P/D-Chittenden, also attended in support of the nurses.
The hospital and nurses will hold three more negotiation sessions this week.