MEDFORD, Ore. – Nurses at Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center, represented by the Oregon Nurses Association (ONA), successfully reached a tentative agreement on a new 3-year contract with hospital administrators on July 28.
Nurses and the hospital’s administrators reached the agreement following a 15-hour mediation session which ended early Friday morning.
“Nurses’ goal was to make improvements to the hospital so we could continue providing the high-quality health care our patients deserve. Our community understood that and they supported their nurses every step of the way,” said David Baca, RN, a member of ONA’s executive committee and negotiating teams at Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center. “This agreement is an important victory for our patients, our community, our nurses and the hospital. I’m proud that nurses and the hospital’s administrative team were able to work together to find ways to improve care for patients and continue our tradition of award-winning health care.”
The agreement comes less than a day after more than 300 nurses and community members held a rally in support of nurses prior to the start of their mediation session with hospital administrators. In addition to the nurses and community members at the rally, many nurses and hospital staff at Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center wore black scrubs during work Thursday to show their support for nurses.
Highlights of the tentative contract agreement:
- Improves patients’ care by using more relief nurses to fill scheduling gaps and allow nurses to take short, earned breaks
- Helps the hospital attract new nurses by offering modest cost-of-living wage increases ranging from 2 to 2.5 percent a year to keep the hospital's compensation competitive
- Increases nurse retention by preserving earned sick time and other critical benefits for nurses and their families
The ONA nurse negotiating team at Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center recommends a “yes” vote on the contract agreement. Nurses are expected to vote on the agreement August 8.
ONA represents nearly 900 registered nurses at Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center and more than 14,000 nurses across the state. It is Oregon’s largest professional association and union for nurses. ONA’s mission is to advocate for nursing, quality health care and healthy communities. For more information visit www.OregonRN.org.
____
View and download photos and a video from the nurses’ rally in Medford on Thursday, July 28. Resources are available for media use courtesy of the Oregon Nurses Association.
Photos: https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B5WoaXKFGaBPWDd0YXAxYmFJdTQ
Video: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5WoaXKFGaBPTnAtT2FSdV9KVHc/view?usp=sharing
