A campaign to support nurses at St. Peter’s Health in Helena is underway. (Provided by the Montana Nurses Association)
The Montana Nurses Association is alleging St. Peter’s Health in Helena committed an unfair labor practice in the midst of union negotiations that undermined work on a new contract.
The group filed the complaint Friday on behalf of Local No. 13.
Last week, the hospital administration sent an email to nurses and other employees with negotiation details — including base salaries — after signing a confidentiality agreement with a national mediator, the nurses said.
“In all honesty, this is the first time I’ve ever had an employer violate a mediation confidentiality agreement,” said Robin Haux, labor program director for the Montana Nurses Association.
St. Pete’s nurses in Helena rally for support for a new contract. (Provided by Montana Nurses Association)
Rachelle Rauser, a nurse at the bargaining table, said the release of private information angered other nurses, and the union leaders have been forced to rebuild trust.
“It feels like the whole time, administration is trying to pit us nurses against each other and just creating havoc,” Rauser said.
It is not the first time the union has raised concerns St. Pete’s administration is in conflict with labor practices.
One year ago, the hospital fired a consultant that a labor representative described as a “union buster” after nurses discovered the administration gave him details about their personal lives.
A spokesperson for St. Peter’s said this week the hospital wants to be transparent, and it sent the email out after mediation.
“We’re grateful for our nurses and the important work they do to care for our patients and community,” spokesperson Jacquelyn Tescher said in an email.
“As their employer, we believe it’s our responsibility to be as open and transparent with the bargaining process as the law allows. A post-mediation offer was communicated to the nurses after it was proposed to the union.”
Labor representative Emily Peterson, however, said the hospital confirmed in an email Sept. 30 it would continue mediation.
The nurses also said bargaining is still underway, and the retention of experienced, local nurses is on the line at the hospital, as is quality care for patients.
Plus, other clinics a stone’s throw away are opening and attracting nurses from the hospital.
“They can go just across town and make a higher wage with some pretty big sign-on bonuses,” Haux said.
Last year, nurses at St. Pete’s clinic voted to join the Local No. 13 Montana Nurses Association union.
St. Pete’s nurses want better pay and to keep their benefits. (Provided by the Montana Nurses Association)
The National Labor Relations Board agreed it was appropriate for the clinic nurses to join the current contract, but the nurses said the hospital delayed negotiations on the change.
This spring, contract negotiations started for both the contract renewal and the change with the additional nurses.
The local has nearly 400 members with the additional nurses from the clinic, according to the Montana Nurses Association.
Negotiations started in April, and the nurses and hospital administration had gone through six mediation sessions as of Thursday, the nurses said.
But Haux said the email last Friday from the administration containing current contract proposals, including base salaries, hindered negotiations.
Rauser said it upset other nurses, who read only one side of the story in the email and wanted more information from their union leaders — who were trying to abide by the confidentiality terms.
It isn’t “rocket science” to understand the release of the information constitutes an unfair labor practice, said Haux.
In the meantime, negotiation continues.
Rauser said the goals with the new contract include retention, especially for experienced nurses who are training new graduates; remaining competitive in compensation with St. Patrick Hospital and Community Medical Center in Missoula; and ensuring safety.
She said St. Pete’s has stressed it wants to be among the top three hospitals in Montana in terms of pay for nurses.
St. Peter’s Health Regional Medical Center photographed on October 4, 2023. (Photo by Nicole Girten/Daily Montanan)
“With the way our contract is going right now, we won’t be at that point,” Rauser said.
She also said it’s important that local nurses be able to continue at the hospital because they’re caring for their own community members.
“And I think that makes a huge difference because we want to take care of our local people,” said Rauser, who is from Townsend.
Haux said she doesn’t believe negotiations are too far apart, but that’s only if the contract protects a couple of current benefits that have been in question, short-term disability and personal leave.
“We just hope that the administration is committed to it as well,” Haux said of the continued mediation. “After last week, we question that, but our goal is still to reach an agreement that the nurses can ratify.”
In an email, St. Pete’s spokesperson Tescher said retention is a priority for the hospital as well.
“Retaining nurses at St. Peter’s, and throughout healthcare in general, is critical as we go forward,” she said in an email. “We remain committed to reaching an agreement that reflects how much we value our nurses, to the greatest extent that is possible for our organization financially.”