Activist, leaders urge nurses to stay unified on overtime and staffing
By DARRYL MCGRATH
The most difficult thing Sue Morano has ever done as a nurse was to walk out of her hospital — not once, but twice — on daylong strikes as she and her colleagues fought to join Local 1199 of the Service Employees International Union.
That was back in 2000. Today, Morano is still a nurse at Community Health Partners Hospital in Lorain, Ohio, and she’s also still an activist with 1199.
“We learned how the voices of many can mean unity,” Morano told an enthusiastic audience of 135 nursing delegates to PEF’s annual convention in October.
UNITING NURSES Sue Morano, keynote speaker at the
nurse's luncheon at PEF's 26th Annual Convention, speaks to 135 nursing
delegates about the importance of activism and political action to improve
patient care. Photo by Richard Dillard
Because of her activism with SEIU, Morano was the keynote speaker at the nurses’ luncheon, where most of the delegates sported lapel stickers with the slogan, “The patient, our choice. The union, our voice.” The state’s Taylor law prohibits PEF nurses and all public employees in New York from striking, but union members have found other ways to make their voices heard, including taking strong political action.
PEF President Roger Benson urged the delegates at the lunch to meet with state lawmakers on the nurses’ legislative lobbying day scheduled for May 16.
“No longer is it going to be our fault when we don’t get safe staffing levels, and we don’t get mandatory staffing levels — it’s going to be their fault,” Benson said.
The Statewide Nurses Committee — with members June Edwards, Deborah Egel, Cindy Bartley-Horn, Joyce Degenhardt, John Dmytrenko, Dee Dodson and Jemma Marie Hanson — is focusing on ending mandatory overtime, establishing appropriate staffing levels and winning fair pay for nurses through geographic salary differentials as key topics this year.
Morano also spoke of the importance of a legislative agenda, and got a round of applause when she told the nurses to take their activism to the next level.
“We must take action to make our voices heard,” she said. “Or better yet, let’s elect nurses into these legislative positions.”
The
Communicator Dec.04-Jan.05
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Nurses:
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