Most nurses don't think of themselves when Dolly Parton’s "9 to 5" comes on the radio. The profession is known for flexible hours and offers big chunks of time off, considering that 65% of nurses already work 12- or 13-hour shifts, according to a study drawn from American Hospital Association Annual Survey of Hospitals data.
Nurses and caregivers from Swedish hospital have notified the hospital that they will strike for three days at all of the medical center's locations in the Seattle region. The Service Employees International Union delivered the strike notice to hospital officials on Friday, after negotiations stalled.
Nurses are fighting back to get benefits they earned over the course of their careers after the hospital announced they would close their doors. On Friday, the Washington State Nurses Association requested the decision to close the hospital be reconsidered by a bankruptcy judge.
It's coming down to the wire for MercyOne Siouxland Medical Center nurses. "We've been bargaining with the hospital since June so six-plus months," said MercyOne nurse, Doug Kelley
More than 100 Enumclaw nurses have reached a tentative agreement with St. Elizabeth hospital, winning better pay and avoiding cuts that were initially proposed. According to a press release from the union, SEIU Healthcare 1199NW, under the new contract, management will develop written staffing guidelines and provide a retroactive raise of 3.25 percent, dating back to April when the old contract expired.
In Sandra Dorsey's 40 years as a nurse, she's been kicked and grabbed and spit on. She's seen another nurse being thrown across the room by a patient who had broken out of leather restraints.