Credit: Tom Sofield/LevittownNow.com
The roughly 40 per-diem nurses at Lower Bucks Hospital in Bristol Township have voted to unionize with the same union that represents full-time nurses.
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The vote still needs to be certified by the National Labor Relations Board, according to a union spokesperson.
Once certified, the per-diem nurses will join the Nurses Association of Lower Bucks Hospital (NALBH), which is represented by Pennsylvania Association of Staff Nurses and Allied Professionals (PASNAP).
“I feel like I can breathe now,” said Lower Bucks Hospital per-diem ICU nurse Maria Valletto, who helped lead the effort to organize. “I was a union nurse when I was full-time, and I wanted the same protections for me and my per diem colleagues. I also know from experience that we will be able to use the voice being a Union member affords us to advocate strongly for our patients and for improvements in patient care.”
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“We believe every nurse should have a voice in the future of our hospital. We will continue to work directly with our nurses to ensure that Lower Bucks Hospital remains a great place to receive care and a great place to work.” said Michelle Aliprantis, a spokesperson for the hospital.
PASNAP said in a press release that the Lower Bucks Hospital per-diem nurses were the fourth newly organized group to take steps to join PASNAP over the past week. The nurses from Chestnut Hill Hospital, technical specialists from Chestnut Hill Hospital, and professionals in the Office of Cancer Research at Fox Chase Medical Center were the groups that requested union recognition from Temple Health.
The full-time nurses at Lower Bucks Hospital, which is owned by for-profit health system Prime Healthcare, are currently negotiating for a new contract.
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“We look forward to our per-diem RNs joining us at the bargaining table to address their needs as well as those of our patients and to help us in our fight for safe staffing,” said ICU nurse Shirley Crowell, co-president of the Nurses Association of Lower Bucks Hospital.
The nurses have told this news organization they are bargaining for better staffing levels, better health plans for staff, and better pay to keep and attract new nurses.
Credit: Tom Sofield/LevittownNow.com
“In this post-pandemic time, when staffing is often skeletal and nurses struggle to give patients the time and attention they deserve, nurses need protections and respect. Our voice has never been more important,” said Temple University Hospital nurse Maureen May, who is president of PASNAP.
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