Western NY nurses mobilize

“I kept reminding them, this is what we asked for,” she said. “We turned to PEF regional and central office staff for help with a rally permit, flyers and signs. We got commitments from President Ken Brynien and state Assembly Member Dan Burling to attend the event and we got the support of the DOCS commissioner,” Baker said.

The March 2 rally was the first time a DOCS commissioner has provided a statement of support. It was read at the rally by Donahue.

“The nurses heard the state Office of Mental Health (OMH) had recently gone on record supporting the union’s effort to bring attention to the nursing shortage. They wanted to see that same commitment from DOCS and they got it,” Donahue said.

Different approach
Unlike past events at DOCS facilities, management was told upfront about the plans to hold the rally and, in an unprecedented move, rolled out the welcome mat for participants to march in front of Attica CF.

“The cooperation from administrators within the facility was phenomenal,” Baker said.

“Everything was falling into place. I met with nurses a couple of days before the event for a final push to get them to come out and they did,” she said.

The rally was covered by two Rochester area television stations. Both used video provided by PEF of nurses working inside the Coxsackie Correctional Facility in Greene County.

The video provided an inside look at what nurses actually do on the job.

“I think it helped to tell our story,” Donahue said. “It put a face on our nurses.”

According to Donahue, personnel from DOCS have been meeting with the state Department of Civil Service (DCS) seeking a solution to the ongoing nursing crisis.

“I’m encouraged by that. You can’t recruit and retain nurses without competitive compensation,” Donahue said.

“We’ve got the momentum and now we need to build on that,” Baker added.

“Our nurses came away from the rally with a good feeling. We’re all working together toward the same goal.”

That goal will be the centerpiece for the next big event, the multi-union nurses’ rally in Albany, June 10.

END MANDATORY OVERTIME — Donna Baker makes her point to the local media.

Story and Photos by Darcy Wells
Short staffing and mandatory overtime already stretch nurses to the limit. Spending their time-off attending a rally is a sacrifice, but one worth making, according to PEF Division 289 Council Leader Donna Baker.

Baker, a nurse 2 who works at Albion Correctional Facility, used a grassroots approach to mobilize nurses from as far away as Cape Vincent CF which is at least a four-hour drive.

“We had nurses from nearly a dozen facilities turn out for a March 2 rally,” Baker said.

According to Baker, the emphasis on speaking with one voice was the draw.

“While the rally was held outside Attica CF, the message focused on the nursing shortage statewide and that was of utmost importance to our nurses,” she said.

How it started
Nurses at the Wende Hub, which is made up of state Department of Correctional Services (DOCS) facilities in Western NY, laid the groundwork for the event.

PEF Region 1 Coordinator Kevin Hintz met with nurses from the different facilities over several weeks and came away with one overriding issue — the nursing crisis.

“It was clear from the very first meeting our nurses need to be heard on short staffing and mandatory overtime at DOCS facilities,” Hintz said.

“They want support from the union and the DOCS commissioner,” he added.

DOCS labor-management chair for PEF, Tom Donahue, describes the nurses as ready to act and looking for leadership and focus.

“We all agreed the action needed was a rally,” Donahue said.

Baker called nurses at least once a week to give updates on the event and encouraged them to get commitments from their co-workers to participate.