ANTI-UNION: David Bussone of UHS
07 December 2006 6:00 am by Taylor Marsh
This coverage sponsored by the SEIU.
One hurdle crossed does not make a race won. This is a long distance struggle
between nurses and for profit hospitals and the people who don\’t want unions
like SEIU to get in the way. It\’s part of our national healthcare debate, which
will only grow more acrimonious if everyone doesn\’t look at the realities. Think
Progress and American
Progress offer more, as does Julia.
If you\’ve seen more stories, please add them in the comments.
David Bussone, pictured above, is the man behind the lock-out of the SEIU nurses
in Las Vegas. Below is an
interview he gave in February 2006, which telegraphs the strife to come
this past week. Bussone no longer flies underneath our radar.
Let\’s talk about the nursing shortage. What is the Valley Health
System doing to recruit and retain nurses?There are a number of things we\’re doing. We are trying to recruit nurses
from other parts of the country. There are places in the United States where
nurses are being laid off. Wisconsin for example – states that are losing
population. The second thing that we\’re doing is we\’re certainly supporting
efforts to home grow our own nurses. We offer nursing scholarships virtually
on an unlimited basis to nurses in the local nursing programs. We\’ve applied
for a grant with UNLV and their School of Nursing to develop an internship
program for nurses in order to stabilize that group of new graduates when
they first go to work for a hospital. Going from the educational environment
to the real world work environment can be very difficult, particularly when
you\’re taking care of sick people. In some hospitals, we\’re also looking internationally
in terms of nursing staff.
I don\’t know about you, but \”home grow our nurses\” sounds a bit dogmatic
to me. Like a nurse farm system that makes nurses beholden to the people educating
them on the profession that is actually a calling and something they will follow
the rest of their lives. The loyalty factor for nurses coming up through a UHS
nurse farm system would likely be obligatory. Then there\’s the obvious question.
If a nurse coming up in Bussone\’s system decides she/he wants to leave what
will be the financial ramifications? Will the nurse have to sign a contract
prior to being educated in Bussone\’s nurse farm system that if she/he leaves
all money will be due in \”x\” amount of time? Frankly, this seems inherently
manipulative. It also smacks of anti-union bias, but maybe I\’m being too harsh.
It\’s not like I don\’t have a bias.
The Service Employees International Union Local 1107 now represents
the majority of the nurses in the Las Vegas Valley although Summerlin\’s and
Spring Valley\’s nurses are not among them. Is the relationship with the union
improving and how does union representation affect nurse retention at Desert
Springs and Valley hospitals?I haven\’t been here that long to be able to tell you how the relationship
with the union has been in the past. Based on what I\’ve seen, I would have
to say it\’s status quo. I don\’t know that I can answer the question about
retention.
\”Status quo\” is a very odd answer. You\’d think someone in the position
of director of something as large as Valley Health Systems would at least make
the effort to put forth some pr that shows flexibility in dealing with SEIU,
at least in public and on the record. Perhaps say, \”I\’m looking forward
to working with SEIU and the nurses to the patients\’ benefit, which is everyone\’s
goal.\” But nooooo.
Consider this next little item as foreshadowing of the larger story still playing
out between SEIU and David Bussone of UHS.
In 2006, most of the SEIU\’s contracts expire with the Valley Health
System and other local hospitals. Is there concern about a nursing strike
that could cripple the local hospitals? What is being done to avoid such a
scenario?You would probably need to ask the folks at the SEIU about the nursing strike
part of it. I would hope not because it would have a pretty significant negative
effect on the ability of any valley hospital that was struck. It would obviously
impair our ability to take care of patients to some extent. It would also
have a pretty devastating effect on the local economy. I would be concerned
if I were a tourist getting ready to go to Las Vegas and were to read in the
newspaper that a bunch of the hospitals were impacted by a strike.
Well, that\’s startling. Mr. Bussone abdicates any responsibility whatsoever
for conditions that would cause union nurses to take action. In other words,
strikes happen because of union nurses, not because of things like patient-to-nurse
ratios, mandatory overtime, or \”floating\” nurses to stations in a
hospital beyond their expertise. Bussone also admits something that goes counter
to all the talking points recently put forth by the hospital administrators
caught on camera during the SEIU nurse lock-out. That is, care for the patients
was hurt by Bussone\’s decision to lock-out the nurses. Mind you, the nurses
agreed to the cooling off period Bussone didn\’t want, but had to eventually
swallow late yesterday, because public outcry and the progressive blogosphere
raised a ruckus. But the coup de grace is when Bussone makes an outrageous inference
that tourism, the lifeblood of Las Vegas, will be hurt by \”a strike.\”
Translation: Blame the unions. Because the profit before patient corporations
run by people like Bussone refuse to take responsibility for running a hospital
short of nurses, while demanding things of these professional caregivers that
are beyond any reasonable contract anyone should sign. But for Bussone and hospital
administrators of his ilk, that\’s the point. He doesn\’t want no stinkin\’ contract.
It\’s all about nurse farm systems that force loyalty, with every patient for
him or herself.
All this, ladies and gentlemen, could be coming to a city near you.
NOTE: Commissioner
Rory Reid and Speaker-elect Barbara
Buckley, both of whom were inside the negotiations between SEIU and UHS,
will be guests on Taylor
Marsh LIVE! tomorrow, 6-7 p.m. eastern and 3-4 p.m. pacific, with podcasts
available.
