1 00:00:04,960 --> 00:00:07,640 Speaker 1: Welcome to Dick had Happened Here, the show about things 2 00:00:07,680 --> 00:00:10,480 Speaker 1: following apart how to put them back together again. I'm 3 00:00:10,480 --> 00:00:12,520 Speaker 1: your host, Mia Wong, and today we have a really 4 00:00:12,560 --> 00:00:15,040 Speaker 1: exciting episode. We're gonna be talking to a group of 5 00:00:15,080 --> 00:00:19,000 Speaker 1: workers from the California Nurses Association, which is specifically their 6 00:00:19,200 --> 00:00:21,560 Speaker 1: national Organizing Committee, which is I think better known to 7 00:00:21,640 --> 00:00:24,120 Speaker 1: most people. And then you are a National Nurses United 8 00:00:24,880 --> 00:00:30,280 Speaker 1: and these people are part of a shift of workers 9 00:00:30,320 --> 00:00:33,120 Speaker 1: who was for the first time running a rank and 10 00:00:33,200 --> 00:00:36,880 Speaker 1: file slate for the Council of Presidents, which is sort 11 00:00:36,880 --> 00:00:39,680 Speaker 1: of They're a body that combines the positions of vice 12 00:00:39,680 --> 00:00:44,240 Speaker 1: president president in the union. They're called Shift Change. And so, Eric, 13 00:00:44,280 --> 00:00:46,880 Speaker 1: do you want to introduce yourself? All right, my name 14 00:00:46,960 --> 00:00:50,400 Speaker 1: is Eric Cook. I've been a nurse for thirty two years. 15 00:00:51,159 --> 00:00:55,680 Speaker 1: I currently work in the cardiac telemetry floor. And I 16 00:00:55,760 --> 00:00:58,480 Speaker 1: became a nurse after being a Navy corman in the 17 00:00:58,520 --> 00:01:03,680 Speaker 1: First Call War and just continued in healthcare from there. 18 00:01:04,160 --> 00:01:07,360 Speaker 1: I was originally an alvin and then became a registered nurse. 19 00:01:08,000 --> 00:01:11,200 Speaker 1: And I've been on the past three negotiating teams for 20 00:01:12,160 --> 00:01:17,120 Speaker 1: Altabates Summit Hospital and I've seen a lot of changes 21 00:01:17,400 --> 00:01:22,520 Speaker 1: in the attitude and movement of the union in the 22 00:01:22,520 --> 00:01:28,600 Speaker 1: past twelve years. So I'm hoping with John and Raina 23 00:01:28,760 --> 00:01:32,959 Speaker 1: and Mark to make a change for our union and 24 00:01:33,040 --> 00:01:35,880 Speaker 1: our members for the better. Yeah, I'm glad, glad you 25 00:01:35,880 --> 00:01:39,199 Speaker 1: could be here to join us. Thank you. Yeah, Rina, 26 00:01:39,200 --> 00:01:42,480 Speaker 1: do you want to introduce yourself? Hi? There, I'm Rina Lindsay. 27 00:01:43,080 --> 00:01:47,600 Speaker 1: I have been a California nurse for over thirteen years, 28 00:01:48,280 --> 00:01:52,080 Speaker 1: and out of those thirteen years, eight of them I've 29 00:01:52,080 --> 00:01:55,320 Speaker 1: been in Altbate's Medical Center, which was my first union 30 00:01:55,680 --> 00:02:00,760 Speaker 1: as an r N. How I be an Also, I'm sorry. 31 00:02:00,760 --> 00:02:04,760 Speaker 1: And also i work in ice you and I've been 32 00:02:04,800 --> 00:02:11,519 Speaker 1: there through been there for about seven years wow. And 33 00:02:11,560 --> 00:02:15,880 Speaker 1: I've worked with Eric a year prior to that. So 34 00:02:17,240 --> 00:02:18,919 Speaker 1: the reason why I became a nurse, it is a 35 00:02:18,960 --> 00:02:24,680 Speaker 1: long story, but the bridge version is at the beginning, 36 00:02:25,000 --> 00:02:27,920 Speaker 1: I wanted to be a lawyer. So when I went 37 00:02:27,960 --> 00:02:31,640 Speaker 1: to college, kind of fund I was dyslexic, so that 38 00:02:31,760 --> 00:02:35,160 Speaker 1: kind of backed out. And then I also was a 39 00:02:35,240 --> 00:02:38,840 Speaker 1: teen mom, which that's something that a lot of people 40 00:02:38,880 --> 00:02:43,560 Speaker 1: do not know about me. And during that whole process, 41 00:02:44,200 --> 00:02:47,080 Speaker 1: I wanted to find something that I could be an 42 00:02:47,120 --> 00:02:51,200 Speaker 1: advocate for people and also know the political side of it. 43 00:02:51,320 --> 00:02:54,079 Speaker 1: So nursing became the best benefit. One thing I love 44 00:02:54,120 --> 00:02:58,240 Speaker 1: about nursing is you can learn everything about the world, 45 00:02:58,240 --> 00:03:01,920 Speaker 1: to know about people without going anywhere, So that was 46 00:03:02,000 --> 00:03:05,560 Speaker 1: the thrill. And then also being an advocate for the 47 00:03:05,639 --> 00:03:10,600 Speaker 1: patients I take care for. In addition to that, you know, 48 00:03:10,600 --> 00:03:14,480 Speaker 1: knowing my peers and knowing that we all have the 49 00:03:14,600 --> 00:03:18,480 Speaker 1: similar struggles when it comes to the systems that we 50 00:03:18,600 --> 00:03:21,959 Speaker 1: work for. Doesn't matter which employer you work for, and 51 00:03:22,040 --> 00:03:27,120 Speaker 1: so being in the union it gives you that way 52 00:03:27,160 --> 00:03:30,560 Speaker 1: of a contract between you and your employer. And along 53 00:03:30,600 --> 00:03:33,760 Speaker 1: the way there has been some issues which Eric and 54 00:03:33,840 --> 00:03:39,560 Speaker 1: I and John all been experiencing where things do need 55 00:03:39,640 --> 00:03:46,080 Speaker 1: to change, and being part of shift change is part 56 00:03:46,200 --> 00:03:49,080 Speaker 1: where we have to change of leadership and be more 57 00:03:49,120 --> 00:03:54,680 Speaker 1: transparent between the union, the employer, and the people in general. 58 00:03:55,720 --> 00:04:00,760 Speaker 1: Hell yeah, and yeah, John, do you want to introduce yourself? Yeah? Sure, 59 00:04:01,200 --> 00:04:07,520 Speaker 1: I'm John Horronymous. I'm a packy recovery nurse at University 60 00:04:07,560 --> 00:04:10,840 Speaker 1: of Chicago. Before that, I was in the medical u 61 00:04:10,920 --> 00:04:16,680 Speaker 1: for six and a half years, and then before that 62 00:04:16,800 --> 00:04:20,559 Speaker 1: I was like a associate's degree our end working at 63 00:04:20,600 --> 00:04:24,760 Speaker 1: the emergency room at holy Cross Hospital. And I also started, 64 00:04:24,880 --> 00:04:28,000 Speaker 1: which is funny to me, as an LPN, which is 65 00:04:28,040 --> 00:04:31,279 Speaker 1: the same thing as an LVN that Eric did. And 66 00:04:31,360 --> 00:04:35,000 Speaker 1: I was a CNA before that. I decided to become 67 00:04:35,000 --> 00:04:38,279 Speaker 1: a nurse way back in the day when I was 68 00:04:38,400 --> 00:04:40,320 Speaker 1: trying to figure out what I wanted to do after 69 00:04:40,440 --> 00:04:43,719 Speaker 1: dropping out of high school, and I was thinking about 70 00:04:43,760 --> 00:04:45,800 Speaker 1: man and maybe it should become like a history teacher, 71 00:04:45,880 --> 00:04:47,320 Speaker 1: and I was like, oh, why would I want to 72 00:04:47,360 --> 00:04:49,200 Speaker 1: go back to this place I hate so much. I 73 00:04:49,279 --> 00:04:53,640 Speaker 1: dropped out of it, and I personally got like incredibly 74 00:04:53,960 --> 00:04:56,640 Speaker 1: sick with something called uld sort of kalitis, and I 75 00:04:56,680 --> 00:05:00,520 Speaker 1: got a bunch of surgeries done and got some really 76 00:05:00,560 --> 00:05:05,800 Speaker 1: amazing experience being taken care of by nurses, and it 77 00:05:05,920 --> 00:05:09,360 Speaker 1: became really immediately obvious to me, like I also, like Raina, 78 00:05:09,480 --> 00:05:13,279 Speaker 1: wanted to help people. And also I thought that nursing 79 00:05:13,800 --> 00:05:17,640 Speaker 1: was like a way where even like for you know, individuals, 80 00:05:17,680 --> 00:05:20,400 Speaker 1: I could change someone's day just a little bit for 81 00:05:20,440 --> 00:05:24,599 Speaker 1: the better, but also like maybe changed some bigger things. 82 00:05:24,960 --> 00:05:26,880 Speaker 1: And so I thought nursing was just like a really 83 00:05:26,880 --> 00:05:30,080 Speaker 1: great way to do that. Also, it's really fortunate to 84 00:05:30,120 --> 00:05:33,240 Speaker 1: be raised by an amazing nurse. My mom was a 85 00:05:33,360 --> 00:05:38,000 Speaker 1: nurse and she was always like she's like one of 86 00:05:38,040 --> 00:05:42,920 Speaker 1: those people was my hero. And a lot of other 87 00:05:43,000 --> 00:05:47,440 Speaker 1: nurses in my family, both men and women, including someone 88 00:05:47,440 --> 00:05:50,320 Speaker 1: who is like a Kentucky Frontier nurses, like the first 89 00:05:50,360 --> 00:05:53,400 Speaker 1: group of nurse practitioner, nurse midwife back in the like 90 00:05:53,440 --> 00:05:58,200 Speaker 1: the nineteen forties, back in Kentucky. So I've got a 91 00:05:58,200 --> 00:06:01,200 Speaker 1: lot of nurses in my family and on this like 92 00:06:01,680 --> 00:06:07,040 Speaker 1: incredibly proud to be like paring on all the stuff 93 00:06:07,040 --> 00:06:09,400 Speaker 1: that they have been doing for all their years as 94 00:06:09,520 --> 00:06:14,400 Speaker 1: like nurses. So and like meeting the folks out in California, 95 00:06:14,480 --> 00:06:16,839 Speaker 1: like Raina and Eric. It just makes me feel so good, 96 00:06:16,880 --> 00:06:21,359 Speaker 1: like we're doing really important stuff in terms of both 97 00:06:21,520 --> 00:06:25,640 Speaker 1: our daily practice of being a nurse, but also like 98 00:06:26,080 --> 00:06:29,760 Speaker 1: that we can have like this bigger impact on how 99 00:06:29,800 --> 00:06:32,360 Speaker 1: things are happening in our profession, in the healthcare industry 100 00:06:32,400 --> 00:06:37,400 Speaker 1: and just the broader world. Yeah. Yeah, we've we've talked 101 00:06:37,440 --> 00:06:41,000 Speaker 1: like a decent amount on this show now about sort 102 00:06:41,000 --> 00:06:43,440 Speaker 1: of the labor issues that have been facing nurses both 103 00:06:43,480 --> 00:06:45,960 Speaker 1: actually here and in the UK, and I think a 104 00:06:45,960 --> 00:06:47,839 Speaker 1: little bit in a couple of other countries. Yeah, I 105 00:06:47,839 --> 00:06:49,760 Speaker 1: was I was wondering what were the sort of specific 106 00:06:49,839 --> 00:06:53,839 Speaker 1: things that you all were dealing with, both just in 107 00:06:53,880 --> 00:06:57,839 Speaker 1: the profession and then also in the union that got 108 00:06:57,880 --> 00:07:01,440 Speaker 1: you all together to run this slate. Okay, So one 109 00:07:01,440 --> 00:07:05,640 Speaker 1: of the things that caused us to actually meet by 110 00:07:05,720 --> 00:07:11,520 Speaker 1: coincidence was one of my co workers, Torol Doordall, who's 111 00:07:12,360 --> 00:07:17,040 Speaker 1: a Norwegian nurse who's been a nurse here in America 112 00:07:17,120 --> 00:07:24,280 Speaker 1: for over thirty years. She contacted Labor Notes and, you know, 113 00:07:24,360 --> 00:07:28,640 Speaker 1: realizing something was wrong in our union, she started talking 114 00:07:28,680 --> 00:07:34,480 Speaker 1: with specifically Sarah Hughes at labor Notes, and through labor 115 00:07:34,560 --> 00:07:38,440 Speaker 1: Notes and Sarah, we were able to connect with John 116 00:07:38,720 --> 00:07:42,920 Speaker 1: and Chicago, and it was amazing that what we discovered 117 00:07:43,320 --> 00:07:50,280 Speaker 1: is that our problems here in California were mimicking what 118 00:07:50,320 --> 00:07:56,120 Speaker 1: they've experienced in Chicago, and through Sarah finding out from 119 00:07:56,120 --> 00:08:02,600 Speaker 1: other diverse communities of nurses and tech Florida, North Carolina, 120 00:08:02,840 --> 00:08:06,960 Speaker 1: New York, in Minnesota that there same things are happening 121 00:08:07,000 --> 00:08:11,680 Speaker 1: there under our same union. And our complaint was through 122 00:08:11,720 --> 00:08:14,320 Speaker 1: our union was that we felt we were being siloed. 123 00:08:14,800 --> 00:08:18,320 Speaker 1: And of course, when I say siloed, is actually in 124 00:08:18,320 --> 00:08:24,280 Speaker 1: our negotiations. We had seventeen facilities negotiating, but we were 125 00:08:24,360 --> 00:08:27,120 Speaker 1: told that we were not allowed to communicate with each other. 126 00:08:27,520 --> 00:08:33,359 Speaker 1: I said it was it was forbidden by the federal mediator. 127 00:08:34,000 --> 00:08:38,000 Speaker 1: Now why this is? Yes, yes, I know that was 128 00:08:38,160 --> 00:08:42,440 Speaker 1: my reaction initially too. There were two other negotiators on 129 00:08:42,480 --> 00:08:47,600 Speaker 1: the team. It was highly suspicious because the union wanted 130 00:08:47,640 --> 00:08:53,120 Speaker 1: to put all new nurses onto the negotiating team, and 131 00:08:53,240 --> 00:08:55,760 Speaker 1: that was a little bit of a red flag. There 132 00:08:55,760 --> 00:08:59,600 Speaker 1: were so many red flags through this negotiations. I swear 133 00:09:00,280 --> 00:09:02,880 Speaker 1: I could almost see Lennon's tomb, that's how many red 134 00:09:02,880 --> 00:09:07,600 Speaker 1: flags there were. It was amazing to us is that 135 00:09:08,840 --> 00:09:12,080 Speaker 1: they said the mediator forbade us from talking to each other, 136 00:09:12,160 --> 00:09:15,560 Speaker 1: because that was part of the agreement to have the 137 00:09:15,600 --> 00:09:21,479 Speaker 1: federal mediator. The three of us that had previous experience 138 00:09:21,559 --> 00:09:27,320 Speaker 1: with negotiating just knew that was the wrong thing. And 139 00:09:27,840 --> 00:09:33,319 Speaker 1: it took over at least about seven months before we 140 00:09:33,360 --> 00:09:38,040 Speaker 1: started breaking through to other tables and communicating with them 141 00:09:38,080 --> 00:09:41,000 Speaker 1: on text and having our own zoom conversations with them 142 00:09:41,600 --> 00:09:44,520 Speaker 1: to convince them that no, this is a lie. We 143 00:09:44,679 --> 00:09:47,880 Speaker 1: are allowed to talk to each other. And we end 144 00:09:47,960 --> 00:09:51,000 Speaker 1: up finding out that we were kind of being railroaded 145 00:09:51,120 --> 00:09:55,960 Speaker 1: into what we considered an agreement that was less than 146 00:09:57,040 --> 00:10:01,160 Speaker 1: satisfactory for the workers, for the nurses who have suffered 147 00:10:01,240 --> 00:10:05,960 Speaker 1: during the pandemic. We could have gotten probably one of 148 00:10:06,000 --> 00:10:11,199 Speaker 1: the greatest contracts that any nursing body had ever received. 149 00:10:11,840 --> 00:10:17,080 Speaker 1: We had the industry by the throat. We suffered so much, 150 00:10:17,200 --> 00:10:19,800 Speaker 1: you know, John, everybody throughout the country, all the nurse 151 00:10:19,840 --> 00:10:24,720 Speaker 1: has suffered. Everybody's suffered, but everybody that was at that 152 00:10:24,840 --> 00:10:31,760 Speaker 1: bedside during the pandemic, we it was a horrific experience. 153 00:10:32,200 --> 00:10:34,200 Speaker 1: It's great when you take care of people and you 154 00:10:34,240 --> 00:10:38,640 Speaker 1: heal them, Yes, it's that's a great thing. But the 155 00:10:38,880 --> 00:10:44,280 Speaker 1: stress and the you know, the unending anxiety that you felt, 156 00:10:44,840 --> 00:10:47,480 Speaker 1: and then in the midst of this you have a 157 00:10:47,640 --> 00:10:52,000 Speaker 1: union that short changes you at a point when we 158 00:10:52,080 --> 00:10:57,400 Speaker 1: had so much power, and thank Heavens for Sarah to 159 00:10:57,520 --> 00:11:01,040 Speaker 1: put us into contact with all these other nurses to 160 00:11:01,120 --> 00:11:04,960 Speaker 1: realize that it wasn't just the subter division of the 161 00:11:05,000 --> 00:11:10,640 Speaker 1: California Nurses Association that was running things amok. It was 162 00:11:10,760 --> 00:11:16,240 Speaker 1: actually it seemed to be a perceived playbook plan of 163 00:11:16,360 --> 00:11:20,800 Speaker 1: what they were doing throughout the country. And I think 164 00:11:20,960 --> 00:11:24,520 Speaker 1: nobody perceives themselves as doing evil or anything like that. 165 00:11:25,160 --> 00:11:28,680 Speaker 1: I think they always think that they're doing it for 166 00:11:28,760 --> 00:11:34,400 Speaker 1: the better interest of everybody. But that's what's important about 167 00:11:34,440 --> 00:11:38,200 Speaker 1: a rank and file movement is that every nurse, every 168 00:11:39,160 --> 00:11:42,480 Speaker 1: person in the union is important and deserves a voice. 169 00:11:43,320 --> 00:11:47,319 Speaker 1: And we don't need to be gas lit. We don't 170 00:11:47,360 --> 00:11:52,960 Speaker 1: need to be mistreated by the union that we pay 171 00:11:53,040 --> 00:11:57,600 Speaker 1: to represent us. We need to be marching on the boss. 172 00:11:58,679 --> 00:12:06,960 Speaker 1: We could have had an unending euphoria for nurses with 173 00:12:07,040 --> 00:12:10,560 Speaker 1: a contract. We could have had great staffing, we could 174 00:12:10,559 --> 00:12:13,160 Speaker 1: have had better pay, we could have had everything that 175 00:12:13,240 --> 00:12:17,120 Speaker 1: we wanted to make our work lives to be the 176 00:12:17,160 --> 00:12:21,440 Speaker 1: best they could be. And it seemed our union already 177 00:12:21,440 --> 00:12:27,440 Speaker 1: had a preplanned agreement with the corporation. Now they deny that, 178 00:12:28,000 --> 00:12:30,080 Speaker 1: but it's kind of hard to believe when they had 179 00:12:30,120 --> 00:12:36,440 Speaker 1: the same agreement that they were supposedly negotiating in silos 180 00:12:36,800 --> 00:12:40,120 Speaker 1: that they weren't communicate. Each table was supposedly negotiating their own, 181 00:12:40,400 --> 00:12:43,320 Speaker 1: but it was the same thing they wanted at every table, 182 00:12:44,160 --> 00:12:48,280 Speaker 1: and not all the tables were equal. It was very 183 00:12:48,320 --> 00:12:50,840 Speaker 1: sad for us. Like I said, this is the third 184 00:12:50,880 --> 00:12:55,320 Speaker 1: negotiating team. I was on the first negotiating team I 185 00:12:55,400 --> 00:12:59,720 Speaker 1: was on. We lasted over two years negotiating and we 186 00:12:59,720 --> 00:13:04,400 Speaker 1: went through nine strikes and threatened at tenth and until 187 00:13:04,440 --> 00:13:09,800 Speaker 1: we got an agreement. So our hospital, obviously it's Altibates 188 00:13:09,800 --> 00:13:14,200 Speaker 1: Hospital in Berkeley. Our sister hospital, Summit Hospital in Oakland, 189 00:13:14,760 --> 00:13:18,640 Speaker 1: and we have affiliated with us, is the Herrot Campus, 190 00:13:18,679 --> 00:13:27,319 Speaker 1: which is the the psychiatric facility. And we have struggled 191 00:13:27,360 --> 00:13:31,760 Speaker 1: so much through this pandemic and it was amazing to 192 00:13:31,880 --> 00:13:36,120 Speaker 1: us that we came up with less than what we 193 00:13:36,160 --> 00:13:39,000 Speaker 1: should have gotten. I will tell you that thanks to 194 00:13:39,080 --> 00:13:43,320 Speaker 1: Sarah and meeting all these other nurses, we were able 195 00:13:43,360 --> 00:13:47,080 Speaker 1: to come back. And I think through fear and intimidation, 196 00:13:47,760 --> 00:13:51,920 Speaker 1: our union was forced to back us and we're able 197 00:13:51,920 --> 00:13:56,800 Speaker 1: to get economically what we wanted. But like the rest 198 00:13:56,800 --> 00:14:00,160 Speaker 1: of the country, as nurses, we wanted better staffing. We 199 00:14:00,240 --> 00:14:06,040 Speaker 1: needed more more bodies at the bedside. We're overworked, we're fatigued. 200 00:14:07,440 --> 00:14:11,160 Speaker 1: Raina worked in the ICU and they had their own 201 00:14:11,200 --> 00:14:15,800 Speaker 1: COVID unit there. Um. I don't think there was enough 202 00:14:15,840 --> 00:14:18,000 Speaker 1: tums and roll aids to go around for all of 203 00:14:18,040 --> 00:14:24,760 Speaker 1: those nurses. The anxiety and um, you know, the heart 204 00:14:24,800 --> 00:14:28,160 Speaker 1: in your throat and of course John himself, I don't 205 00:14:28,160 --> 00:14:31,680 Speaker 1: want to his personal business, but you know his experience. 206 00:14:31,720 --> 00:14:35,760 Speaker 1: He has long COVID. So we we as nurses, have 207 00:14:35,840 --> 00:14:38,880 Speaker 1: suffered quite a bit, and we expected a lot more 208 00:14:38,960 --> 00:14:43,240 Speaker 1: from our union. Yeah, and I mean even just on 209 00:14:43,320 --> 00:14:47,640 Speaker 1: a very basic level, like no matter what you go through, 210 00:14:47,720 --> 00:14:49,760 Speaker 1: you have the right for your union not to light you. 211 00:14:50,480 --> 00:14:54,320 Speaker 1: Let's see, this is a very elementary sort of that's 212 00:14:54,360 --> 00:14:58,600 Speaker 1: a that's a really elementary thing. Yeah, but like it's 213 00:14:58,640 --> 00:15:05,120 Speaker 1: really u it's really scary how comfortable some of the 214 00:15:05,160 --> 00:15:08,840 Speaker 1: people who are paid their wages out of our dues 215 00:15:09,480 --> 00:15:12,440 Speaker 1: are with lying to us. I think that's a thing 216 00:15:12,560 --> 00:15:15,880 Speaker 1: that like, um, you know, like we're one of the 217 00:15:15,920 --> 00:15:19,400 Speaker 1: things we're specifically fighting for is like transparency and accountability, 218 00:15:19,520 --> 00:15:26,960 Speaker 1: especially for our staff. And you know, when I, you know, 219 00:15:27,080 --> 00:15:29,240 Speaker 1: Eric mentioned that I had had long COVID, I'm finally 220 00:15:29,280 --> 00:15:31,680 Speaker 1: getting I've been to the point where I'm like as 221 00:15:31,720 --> 00:15:34,800 Speaker 1: recovered as I probably ever will be, and which is great. 222 00:15:34,840 --> 00:15:37,920 Speaker 1: You know, being recovered from long COVID is so much 223 00:15:37,960 --> 00:15:42,520 Speaker 1: better than having long COVID. But you know, I was 224 00:15:42,520 --> 00:15:44,840 Speaker 1: always like someone that they came to to ask for 225 00:15:44,920 --> 00:15:48,240 Speaker 1: help with like political sorts of issues inside the union, 226 00:15:49,920 --> 00:15:52,000 Speaker 1: or they would come to me for Medicare for all 227 00:15:52,520 --> 00:15:58,200 Speaker 1: or um you know, speaking around things like ratios that 228 00:15:58,240 --> 00:16:00,440 Speaker 1: sort of stuff, or they would send me off to 229 00:16:00,680 --> 00:16:03,200 Speaker 1: When the Chicago teachers went on strike in twenty nineteen, 230 00:16:04,160 --> 00:16:06,400 Speaker 1: I was sent to speak on behalf of our union 231 00:16:06,400 --> 00:16:08,280 Speaker 1: for them, and you know, just doing the work of 232 00:16:09,440 --> 00:16:11,840 Speaker 1: I'm kind of a I'm a bit of an agitator. 233 00:16:12,680 --> 00:16:19,160 Speaker 1: And then COVID hit and it was just a really 234 00:16:20,440 --> 00:16:25,200 Speaker 1: surreal experience. And my area the hospital is one of 235 00:16:25,240 --> 00:16:28,360 Speaker 1: those places where they basically did everything they could to 236 00:16:28,600 --> 00:16:31,520 Speaker 1: minimize the amount of surgeries we were doing initially when 237 00:16:31,560 --> 00:16:33,480 Speaker 1: the lockdowns were happening for the first six months of 238 00:16:33,480 --> 00:16:37,760 Speaker 1: the pandemic, and then but they were moving us into 239 00:16:37,800 --> 00:16:40,440 Speaker 1: because we are all former ICU nurses, so I would 240 00:16:40,440 --> 00:16:43,480 Speaker 1: do my shift a few shifts up in the medical 241 00:16:43,520 --> 00:16:46,000 Speaker 1: ICEU than we made a special clean ICEU because we're 242 00:16:46,040 --> 00:16:50,640 Speaker 1: still getting traumas. A University of Chicago apparently sees more 243 00:16:50,920 --> 00:16:56,200 Speaker 1: penetrating gunshot and stab wounds than any other hospital in 244 00:16:56,200 --> 00:17:00,200 Speaker 1: the United States. Thirty percent of our traumas are are 245 00:17:00,280 --> 00:17:06,040 Speaker 1: from some sort of violence, which is substantially higher than 246 00:17:06,040 --> 00:17:11,600 Speaker 1: anywhere else in the US and then I got sick, right, 247 00:17:11,680 --> 00:17:13,760 Speaker 1: and so to me, the union was like a thing. 248 00:17:13,800 --> 00:17:15,879 Speaker 1: It was like, man, this is nice to have. I 249 00:17:15,920 --> 00:17:18,960 Speaker 1: had never worked at an union hospital before. Getting union 250 00:17:19,040 --> 00:17:21,680 Speaker 1: raises was like a big step up in my life, 251 00:17:21,720 --> 00:17:26,119 Speaker 1: you know. And it was also like, oh yeah, our 252 00:17:26,200 --> 00:17:28,800 Speaker 1: union's progressive, Like I kind of I like most of 253 00:17:28,800 --> 00:17:33,920 Speaker 1: the things that it stands for, and I didn't really 254 00:17:33,920 --> 00:17:36,560 Speaker 1: think of it as someone that needed the union right 255 00:17:36,640 --> 00:17:38,879 Speaker 1: to do the things that unions really kind of like 256 00:17:39,359 --> 00:17:41,119 Speaker 1: is the bread and butter of unions, which is like 257 00:17:41,240 --> 00:17:44,520 Speaker 1: coming in and like helping you when you need help 258 00:17:44,760 --> 00:17:49,000 Speaker 1: as an individual worker, and you know, when you're not 259 00:17:49,040 --> 00:17:51,840 Speaker 1: in the middle of like a contract negotiation. And I 260 00:17:51,880 --> 00:17:56,200 Speaker 1: got sick with long COVID and lost. We had negotiated 261 00:17:56,200 --> 00:18:00,560 Speaker 1: this great you know, like COVID six pay polow see, 262 00:18:00,960 --> 00:18:04,640 Speaker 1: and management just took that away without like from me, 263 00:18:05,080 --> 00:18:08,520 Speaker 1: without really giving any notice or you know, explaination why. 264 00:18:08,760 --> 00:18:12,000 Speaker 1: And you sit there trying to get like the help 265 00:18:12,119 --> 00:18:15,040 Speaker 1: that you need from your Union's like I'm trying to 266 00:18:15,040 --> 00:18:17,520 Speaker 1: explain why it is that, like this is a problem 267 00:18:17,640 --> 00:18:21,080 Speaker 1: for me to our labor rep who's like our they 268 00:18:21,160 --> 00:18:23,800 Speaker 1: called them business agents. Labor reps whatever. There are people 269 00:18:23,840 --> 00:18:28,600 Speaker 1: who basically are paid out of our dues to kind 270 00:18:28,600 --> 00:18:32,679 Speaker 1: of help us in theory like stay organized and be 271 00:18:32,920 --> 00:18:35,800 Speaker 1: pushing management to do, you know, to follow the contract. 272 00:18:37,560 --> 00:18:40,440 Speaker 1: And it got to the point where like my partner 273 00:18:41,840 --> 00:18:44,600 Speaker 1: who's like is like literally screaming at the labor repel. 274 00:18:44,680 --> 00:18:46,440 Speaker 1: I'm on the phone with the labor rep and she's 275 00:18:46,600 --> 00:18:47,960 Speaker 1: you know, it's just like what the fuck is your 276 00:18:48,000 --> 00:18:50,640 Speaker 1: union even doing? Like why are they not making sure 277 00:18:50,680 --> 00:18:52,720 Speaker 1: that you are taking care of And it was like 278 00:18:52,720 --> 00:18:55,920 Speaker 1: this really like come to Jesus moment where you're like, oh, yeah, 279 00:18:56,080 --> 00:19:00,080 Speaker 1: like this union ship isn't just like you know, flat 280 00:19:00,119 --> 00:19:02,840 Speaker 1: tudes about like we need a ratio bill in Illinois 281 00:19:03,200 --> 00:19:06,879 Speaker 1: or you know, Medicare for all or Bernie Sanders. It's like, oh, 282 00:19:06,920 --> 00:19:10,560 Speaker 1: this shit is actually like about my material well being 283 00:19:11,119 --> 00:19:13,640 Speaker 1: and like my family still hasn't recovered from all that 284 00:19:13,720 --> 00:19:17,639 Speaker 1: because they only you know, after an enormous amount of 285 00:19:17,680 --> 00:19:20,880 Speaker 1: pressure was put on staff, they finally started looking into 286 00:19:20,920 --> 00:19:25,520 Speaker 1: it and we got you know, payouts for not just me, 287 00:19:25,680 --> 00:19:28,439 Speaker 1: but for ten other nurses who had had their COVID 288 00:19:28,480 --> 00:19:35,000 Speaker 1: pay like cut, you like really unjust ways and really 289 00:19:35,000 --> 00:19:37,680 Speaker 1: opened my eyes as to like what a union should 290 00:19:37,760 --> 00:19:40,399 Speaker 1: be doing. Um, and it really opened my eyes that 291 00:19:40,480 --> 00:19:44,240 Speaker 1: maybe there's a problem with how staff interact with us 292 00:19:44,280 --> 00:19:49,720 Speaker 1: as workers, because like there should be you know, we 293 00:19:49,880 --> 00:19:52,160 Speaker 1: try and like say, like you know, there's a service 294 00:19:52,240 --> 00:19:56,560 Speaker 1: union service business or service unionism, and then there's rank 295 00:19:56,600 --> 00:19:59,200 Speaker 1: and value unionism and we have this weird situation sharing 296 00:19:59,280 --> 00:20:01,040 Speaker 1: union where they tell us where a rank and file 297 00:20:01,200 --> 00:20:06,680 Speaker 1: democratic union, except the staff kind of treat us like, 298 00:20:06,880 --> 00:20:09,200 Speaker 1: you know, it's a business union. So we get told 299 00:20:09,240 --> 00:20:12,280 Speaker 1: one thing, but then we see another thing and like 300 00:20:13,760 --> 00:20:17,879 Speaker 1: not that I think that like, uh, it's you know, 301 00:20:18,400 --> 00:20:20,280 Speaker 1: the whole point of a union, you kind of pull 302 00:20:20,320 --> 00:20:22,239 Speaker 1: together to take care of people who can't necessarily take 303 00:20:22,280 --> 00:20:24,960 Speaker 1: care of themselves. In that moment, and like it just 304 00:20:25,000 --> 00:20:28,280 Speaker 1: took an enormous amount of effort on my family's part 305 00:20:28,320 --> 00:20:32,240 Speaker 1: to like get that moving, and it just seemed incredibly 306 00:20:32,320 --> 00:20:34,040 Speaker 1: it was as very eye opening for me as a 307 00:20:34,280 --> 00:20:39,240 Speaker 1: you know, my experience here in Chicago. No, that that's 308 00:20:39,280 --> 00:20:41,760 Speaker 1: really bleak. I mean that that's another thing that you 309 00:20:41,800 --> 00:20:45,879 Speaker 1: would you know, you would expect a union like to 310 00:20:46,080 --> 00:20:48,399 Speaker 1: just be on top of not not even just a 311 00:20:48,520 --> 00:20:51,119 Speaker 1: sort of oh well, you asked them and they started 312 00:20:51,160 --> 00:20:53,560 Speaker 1: doing it like you you would think that, hey, the 313 00:20:53,600 --> 00:20:56,600 Speaker 1: people who got COVID doing this job not getting paid 314 00:20:57,400 --> 00:20:59,440 Speaker 1: what they're supposed to be getting paid would be like 315 00:21:00,080 --> 00:21:01,840 Speaker 1: priority and not something you have to fight them over. 316 00:21:02,760 --> 00:21:18,280 Speaker 1: That is is incredibly crim I don't know, well, I 317 00:21:18,440 --> 00:21:21,960 Speaker 1: haven't a story for you. So my first year working 318 00:21:22,119 --> 00:21:25,879 Speaker 1: at out to Bates. Before that, I was working in 319 00:21:25,960 --> 00:21:30,359 Speaker 1: Swallow hospitals and they gave you certain packages about your benefits. 320 00:21:31,119 --> 00:21:33,720 Speaker 1: So when it was time for me to give my benefits, 321 00:21:33,720 --> 00:21:35,879 Speaker 1: I couldn't give my benefits at all because during that 322 00:21:35,960 --> 00:21:38,680 Speaker 1: time they were doing it at the yearly. So I said, 323 00:21:38,760 --> 00:21:41,640 Speaker 1: is there any way possible at least to get something, 324 00:21:41,720 --> 00:21:44,040 Speaker 1: because mind you, they are and for my benefits, I'm 325 00:21:44,080 --> 00:21:47,680 Speaker 1: not paying for it anything for it that there should 326 00:21:47,760 --> 00:21:50,040 Speaker 1: be a reason because if I had any medical issues, 327 00:21:51,400 --> 00:21:56,240 Speaker 1: what would happen? And basically the union was very lackluster 328 00:21:56,320 --> 00:21:58,440 Speaker 1: about it. Now, of course I went to the manager, 329 00:21:58,880 --> 00:22:02,400 Speaker 1: went to human resource. Basically they basically told me, where 330 00:22:02,400 --> 00:22:05,960 Speaker 1: there's eighteen hundred nurses, and you know what we're going 331 00:22:06,040 --> 00:22:10,440 Speaker 1: to do about this issue, and pretty much it was. 332 00:22:12,600 --> 00:22:14,760 Speaker 1: It has pretty much disappeared about it. There was nothing 333 00:22:14,840 --> 00:22:17,480 Speaker 1: I could do so for that whole year. So I 334 00:22:17,720 --> 00:22:22,520 Speaker 1: worked in January of two fifteen, I had to wait 335 00:22:22,760 --> 00:22:27,680 Speaker 1: till the following year to get benefits. To get medical benefits, 336 00:22:27,760 --> 00:22:30,960 Speaker 1: jes Now, I got everything else, so be honest, I 337 00:22:30,960 --> 00:22:33,560 Speaker 1: got everything else, But the medical benefits is important. But 338 00:22:33,680 --> 00:22:37,080 Speaker 1: thank god I don't have any health issues. Thank god 339 00:22:37,520 --> 00:22:40,399 Speaker 1: my daughters didn't have any health issues where we didn't 340 00:22:40,440 --> 00:22:44,280 Speaker 1: require any help and there wasn't in an emergency. But 341 00:22:44,400 --> 00:22:47,760 Speaker 1: when I started noticing there were other nurses or teas 342 00:22:47,880 --> 00:22:49,560 Speaker 1: that were spirits of the same thing. Because a lot 343 00:22:49,600 --> 00:22:53,520 Speaker 1: of us got hired within that time frame, they weren't 344 00:22:53,760 --> 00:22:56,800 Speaker 1: telling us these issues, and we would end up getting 345 00:22:56,840 --> 00:23:02,040 Speaker 1: these things sooner. And it's all about transparency, it's all 346 00:23:02,080 --> 00:23:06,640 Speaker 1: about our value. And then over the years, people always complain, 347 00:23:07,320 --> 00:23:10,480 Speaker 1: I'm paying these dues, why are they not helping? Why 348 00:23:10,480 --> 00:23:15,000 Speaker 1: are not supportive? And when I was actually hired, they 349 00:23:15,040 --> 00:23:17,920 Speaker 1: were quick to give you the paperwork to tell you 350 00:23:18,440 --> 00:23:20,400 Speaker 1: how to pay this. Also they could take money off 351 00:23:20,440 --> 00:23:24,159 Speaker 1: your dues quicker than what about the history about the union? 352 00:23:24,880 --> 00:23:28,000 Speaker 1: Why is the history is? Why is the union important? 353 00:23:28,760 --> 00:23:32,560 Speaker 1: And what you can do if there's a grievemance? There 354 00:23:32,640 --> 00:23:35,160 Speaker 1: was none of that, and to this day it's still 355 00:23:35,200 --> 00:23:39,000 Speaker 1: the same thing because I precept new grads and I 356 00:23:39,280 --> 00:23:41,159 Speaker 1: tell them about, you know, part of the union. What 357 00:23:41,240 --> 00:23:44,520 Speaker 1: he got. Oh I didn't get a booklet or oh 358 00:23:44,560 --> 00:23:46,240 Speaker 1: I didn't hear anything about it, but I got this 359 00:23:46,320 --> 00:23:50,080 Speaker 1: paper here so they could take out my dues. That's 360 00:23:50,160 --> 00:23:57,120 Speaker 1: what pisses me off of anything. Is that part so so? 361 00:23:57,400 --> 00:24:01,640 Speaker 1: And then all this stuff dealing with what Eric has 362 00:24:01,680 --> 00:24:04,280 Speaker 1: told you, what we've been doing with the strikes and 363 00:24:04,400 --> 00:24:08,880 Speaker 1: the negotiations meet. Personally, we should have done negotiated within 364 00:24:08,920 --> 00:24:11,680 Speaker 1: the first year the pandemic, and I think we got everything, 365 00:24:11,960 --> 00:24:14,040 Speaker 1: but they were quick to say, no, we're going to 366 00:24:14,119 --> 00:24:16,840 Speaker 1: get all these facilities all together at one and so 367 00:24:16,880 --> 00:24:20,240 Speaker 1: we can all negotiate. And then the gag order happened, 368 00:24:20,400 --> 00:24:23,960 Speaker 1: the slam of the gag order, and I'm like, there 369 00:24:24,080 --> 00:24:26,639 Speaker 1: is a lot of collusion going on and that shit 370 00:24:27,280 --> 00:24:31,320 Speaker 1: needs to stop. So I mean things that they don't 371 00:24:31,320 --> 00:24:33,680 Speaker 1: really tell us, which I think is really a thing 372 00:24:33,720 --> 00:24:36,560 Speaker 1: that we want to resolve, is they don't really inform 373 00:24:36,600 --> 00:24:39,040 Speaker 1: you of what your union rights are. You kind of 374 00:24:39,040 --> 00:24:41,240 Speaker 1: get the initial like here's your wine garden rights, which 375 00:24:41,240 --> 00:24:43,680 Speaker 1: means that you have a right to representation whenever you're 376 00:24:43,720 --> 00:24:47,720 Speaker 1: being disciplined. But aside from that, there's very little discussion 377 00:24:47,840 --> 00:24:53,840 Speaker 1: inside of our union facilities, in particular about the kinds 378 00:24:53,880 --> 00:24:57,399 Speaker 1: of things that we have as like union members, what 379 00:24:57,520 --> 00:25:00,560 Speaker 1: our rights are, what are our rights within the union, 380 00:25:01,560 --> 00:25:04,719 Speaker 1: how the union works. So many of my co workers 381 00:25:04,880 --> 00:25:07,280 Speaker 1: don't like a big part of our work is just 382 00:25:07,400 --> 00:25:12,359 Speaker 1: explaining that there's an election happening. And so you would 383 00:25:12,359 --> 00:25:15,840 Speaker 1: hear that an election had happened maybe and you know, 384 00:25:16,040 --> 00:25:17,760 Speaker 1: you would be like, well, who voted? I don't know, 385 00:25:17,920 --> 00:25:22,639 Speaker 1: like and you'd get these like, you know, all of 386 00:25:22,680 --> 00:25:26,800 Speaker 1: the communication from about the election to us as the 387 00:25:26,880 --> 00:25:30,080 Speaker 1: people who are like the you know, the opposition has 388 00:25:30,119 --> 00:25:33,760 Speaker 1: all been in these very like plane plane envelopes that 389 00:25:33,800 --> 00:25:36,359 Speaker 1: don't look like anything like it could be like just 390 00:25:36,400 --> 00:25:41,320 Speaker 1: an anonymous bill you wouldn't know or junk mail, and 391 00:25:41,400 --> 00:25:44,600 Speaker 1: so like, you know, as a union member, you have 392 00:25:45,280 --> 00:25:51,280 Speaker 1: something called a right to represent representation. So and every union, 393 00:25:51,800 --> 00:25:56,440 Speaker 1: every union employee and elected officer is considered a fiduciary, 394 00:25:57,160 --> 00:25:59,719 Speaker 1: has a fiduciary obligation to look out for your financial 395 00:25:59,720 --> 00:26:02,400 Speaker 1: interest us and if they don't do that, it's called 396 00:26:02,400 --> 00:26:08,080 Speaker 1: a failure to represent our union in particular, Spends had 397 00:26:08,280 --> 00:26:12,600 Speaker 1: brags internally about never having a They called them unfair 398 00:26:12,680 --> 00:26:16,119 Speaker 1: labor practice. Like if a nurse or any worker in 399 00:26:16,200 --> 00:26:19,480 Speaker 1: any union decides that their union, you know, did not 400 00:26:19,640 --> 00:26:23,240 Speaker 1: represent them their financial interests, they can file something called 401 00:26:23,280 --> 00:26:27,160 Speaker 1: an unfair labor practice claim for failure to represent. Our 402 00:26:27,240 --> 00:26:31,200 Speaker 1: union is like they've never had an unfair labor practice claim. 403 00:26:31,240 --> 00:26:35,040 Speaker 1: Stick We've foy had one of their unfair labor practice claims, 404 00:26:35,080 --> 00:26:39,000 Speaker 1: and somehow it got like withdrawn like in this really 405 00:26:39,040 --> 00:26:42,280 Speaker 1: like sketchy way, and it was like just a random 406 00:26:42,320 --> 00:26:45,000 Speaker 1: one that we picked to to see what happened, and 407 00:26:45,040 --> 00:26:48,159 Speaker 1: so then it got like assigned like a special like 408 00:26:48,320 --> 00:26:52,760 Speaker 1: liaison like afterwards, like they're like, oh, we weren't supposed 409 00:26:52,800 --> 00:26:55,760 Speaker 1: to do that, like when we contacted the Department of Labor, 410 00:26:57,000 --> 00:26:59,040 Speaker 1: We're going to look at that again and figure out 411 00:26:59,040 --> 00:27:02,160 Speaker 1: what's going on with it. And it also turns out 412 00:27:02,160 --> 00:27:05,359 Speaker 1: when we started doing research, which I think every union 413 00:27:05,359 --> 00:27:07,679 Speaker 1: member listening to this should know, every union has to 414 00:27:07,760 --> 00:27:13,800 Speaker 1: file paperwork they're legal. There's legally mandated reporting. So there's 415 00:27:13,840 --> 00:27:16,560 Speaker 1: things called LM two's and nine nineties that you can 416 00:27:16,600 --> 00:27:20,080 Speaker 1: get from the Office of labor management. You google them 417 00:27:20,119 --> 00:27:22,480 Speaker 1: and they'll figure you can search for your own union 418 00:27:24,080 --> 00:27:26,560 Speaker 1: and you get to see the union finances. And we 419 00:27:26,640 --> 00:27:28,840 Speaker 1: found out that there's like forty two million dollars that 420 00:27:28,920 --> 00:27:32,040 Speaker 1: our unions chief in the bank account. And this goes 421 00:27:32,080 --> 00:27:36,400 Speaker 1: to there is an article it was in Jacobin I'm 422 00:27:36,400 --> 00:27:39,840 Speaker 1: not sure about like the financialization of unions, and we're 423 00:27:39,880 --> 00:27:42,280 Speaker 1: like forty two million dollars. What is that? It's like 424 00:27:42,400 --> 00:27:44,400 Speaker 1: and they, you know, unions will brags like, oh, we've 425 00:27:44,400 --> 00:27:46,320 Speaker 1: got a forty two million dollars war chest, but like, 426 00:27:46,359 --> 00:27:48,480 Speaker 1: what are we spending that forty two million dollars on? 427 00:27:49,480 --> 00:27:52,520 Speaker 1: Is it to like fight arbitrations and constantly be making 428 00:27:52,600 --> 00:27:55,480 Speaker 1: like our like working conditions better and taking fights to 429 00:27:55,520 --> 00:27:58,160 Speaker 1: the bosses? And is like no, Actually, what they're doing 430 00:27:58,240 --> 00:28:01,639 Speaker 1: is they're spending that money on settling unfairly for practice 431 00:28:01,680 --> 00:28:07,159 Speaker 1: claims so they don't actually officially stick. And even against uh, 432 00:28:07,640 --> 00:28:09,760 Speaker 1: you know, isn't to go to war against our you 433 00:28:09,800 --> 00:28:12,760 Speaker 1: know supposed you know, I mean to go to war 434 00:28:12,800 --> 00:28:16,320 Speaker 1: against management. It's to go to war against kind of us. 435 00:28:16,880 --> 00:28:19,360 Speaker 1: And you think about it, it's just it's just so 436 00:28:19,359 --> 00:28:23,280 Speaker 1: wild when you start digging into this stuff it's just crazy. Um, Eric, 437 00:28:23,320 --> 00:28:28,440 Speaker 1: you want to tell them about the office at Oakland. Yeah, 438 00:28:28,480 --> 00:28:32,080 Speaker 1: so obviously we're in the heart of the empire. Um. 439 00:28:32,160 --> 00:28:35,439 Speaker 1: You know, I live of just a few miles from 440 00:28:35,520 --> 00:28:38,360 Speaker 1: the CIENA headquarters and I've been there many times prior 441 00:28:38,400 --> 00:28:42,880 Speaker 1: to the pandemic. Um, you know, and I have taken 442 00:28:42,960 --> 00:28:47,680 Speaker 1: part in lobbying in Washington, DC on behalf of the union. 443 00:28:48,200 --> 00:28:51,600 Speaker 1: You know, nurses from all across the country that are 444 00:28:51,640 --> 00:28:56,280 Speaker 1: in the Union go to DC and we lobby for uh, 445 00:28:56,640 --> 00:28:59,800 Speaker 1: you know, not only for single payer UH and Medicare 446 00:28:59,840 --> 00:29:04,360 Speaker 1: for all, but you know, individual bills that will benefit 447 00:29:04,480 --> 00:29:07,360 Speaker 1: nurses across the country, whether they're in the union or not. 448 00:29:08,480 --> 00:29:11,959 Speaker 1: And you know, I'm very familiar with it. I've lobbied 449 00:29:11,960 --> 00:29:16,760 Speaker 1: in Sacramento, and I've bent to the NNU convention in Minnesota. 450 00:29:16,920 --> 00:29:19,520 Speaker 1: So I've met a lot of nurses across our union. 451 00:29:19,560 --> 00:29:23,680 Speaker 1: In fact, it's one of the when you do that, 452 00:29:23,680 --> 00:29:26,160 Speaker 1: that's about the only time you get to reach out 453 00:29:26,200 --> 00:29:31,000 Speaker 1: and see other union members. One of the things I 454 00:29:31,040 --> 00:29:34,760 Speaker 1: will tell you that John and I and the person 455 00:29:34,800 --> 00:29:37,040 Speaker 1: that's not on the call right now is Mark Goodick. 456 00:29:37,640 --> 00:29:40,560 Speaker 1: He is an American citizen now, but he was a 457 00:29:40,600 --> 00:29:45,000 Speaker 1: Canadian nurse before, and he is right now working on 458 00:29:45,040 --> 00:29:51,280 Speaker 1: our campaign video to introduce us to a broader audience. 459 00:29:52,000 --> 00:29:55,240 Speaker 1: And that's why he's not on the call tonight. We 460 00:29:56,160 --> 00:30:02,760 Speaker 1: should be intermingling and talking with other nurses across the country. 461 00:30:03,200 --> 00:30:06,520 Speaker 1: I should not be siloed here in Oakland and not 462 00:30:06,680 --> 00:30:13,400 Speaker 1: knowing that what a nurse is doing in Texas. And yeah, 463 00:30:13,560 --> 00:30:17,280 Speaker 1: we need to be part of our pledges that we 464 00:30:17,960 --> 00:30:23,840 Speaker 1: need to join hands across this country. Every nurse needs 465 00:30:23,880 --> 00:30:27,880 Speaker 1: to see. We need to digitalize our contract. We need 466 00:30:27,920 --> 00:30:32,600 Speaker 1: to see University of Chicago's contract digitalized. We need to 467 00:30:32,600 --> 00:30:35,600 Speaker 1: be sharing our contracts so we know what good things 468 00:30:35,600 --> 00:30:38,800 Speaker 1: that maybe they got in Texas, or what good things 469 00:30:38,800 --> 00:30:41,440 Speaker 1: they got at the University of Chicago, or what good 470 00:30:41,480 --> 00:30:44,000 Speaker 1: things we have in our contract. We need to see 471 00:30:44,000 --> 00:30:46,880 Speaker 1: that nurses can say, hey, I want that language. We 472 00:30:46,960 --> 00:30:49,000 Speaker 1: need to be sharing that. I don't know why it's 473 00:30:49,080 --> 00:30:53,360 Speaker 1: not happening or why it's just at the upper tiers 474 00:30:53,400 --> 00:30:56,840 Speaker 1: of union management that they see these things, but we 475 00:30:57,840 --> 00:31:03,239 Speaker 1: need to be joined together. No more siloing nurses. You 476 00:31:03,280 --> 00:31:08,080 Speaker 1: know altivates the nurses stay in your lane, Kaiser nurses 477 00:31:08,680 --> 00:31:13,040 Speaker 1: stay in your lane. University of Chicago stay in. You're like, no, no, no, no, 478 00:31:13,120 --> 00:31:19,600 Speaker 1: we need to be one fighting body for the betterment 479 00:31:19,640 --> 00:31:24,320 Speaker 1: of nurses. Uh doubt. You know, it's amazing when you 480 00:31:24,400 --> 00:31:28,840 Speaker 1: find out that we have a beautiful building that the 481 00:31:28,960 --> 00:31:33,120 Speaker 1: Union purchased in downtown Oakland. Um. You know, they only 482 00:31:33,120 --> 00:31:35,680 Speaker 1: occupy a few floors of it and they rent out 483 00:31:35,680 --> 00:31:41,120 Speaker 1: the rest, and you know what, it is a fabulous 484 00:31:41,160 --> 00:31:44,120 Speaker 1: building and it would be great for it to be 485 00:31:44,160 --> 00:31:48,800 Speaker 1: a headquarters where we're we're not just fighting and lobbying 486 00:31:48,880 --> 00:31:55,880 Speaker 1: for Democratic politicians, but we're actually fighting for nurses at 487 00:31:55,880 --> 00:32:00,640 Speaker 1: the bedside. And that's what you know, our whole mission 488 00:32:00,760 --> 00:32:02,600 Speaker 1: is that we're going to be running for is for 489 00:32:02,640 --> 00:32:07,680 Speaker 1: the council presidents. We need to take the macro focus 490 00:32:07,760 --> 00:32:11,600 Speaker 1: down to what is happening at the bedside for every 491 00:32:11,680 --> 00:32:14,760 Speaker 1: nurse across the country and make the change for the 492 00:32:14,800 --> 00:32:19,480 Speaker 1: better for them. And that's the big difference here. I'm 493 00:32:19,520 --> 00:32:23,560 Speaker 1: all for an activist union and I think and we 494 00:32:23,640 --> 00:32:26,640 Speaker 1: have been, the Union is active, and you know climate 495 00:32:26,760 --> 00:32:30,360 Speaker 1: change and you know how the environment affects the community. 496 00:32:31,520 --> 00:32:35,440 Speaker 1: These things are important, but it's more important that we 497 00:32:35,960 --> 00:32:39,160 Speaker 1: take care of the nurses at the bedside and offer 498 00:32:39,200 --> 00:32:42,640 Speaker 1: opportunities for those nurses who want to be involved to 499 00:32:42,680 --> 00:32:46,000 Speaker 1: make the community better. We need to have those resources 500 00:32:46,040 --> 00:32:49,440 Speaker 1: available for them. And if we make nurses lives at 501 00:32:49,440 --> 00:32:52,720 Speaker 1: the bedside better, we're going to have more nurses available 502 00:32:52,760 --> 00:32:55,920 Speaker 1: to make the community better. And that's what we need 503 00:32:55,960 --> 00:32:59,880 Speaker 1: to be working on. It is a it is going 504 00:33:00,080 --> 00:33:06,880 Speaker 1: to be a fight. I can't be more more honest 505 00:33:06,880 --> 00:33:11,760 Speaker 1: than to tell you we are David versus Goliath. We 506 00:33:11,960 --> 00:33:19,720 Speaker 1: are four nurses who really have no big national exposure, 507 00:33:20,200 --> 00:33:23,080 Speaker 1: but the most important thing we have is that we're 508 00:33:23,160 --> 00:33:28,360 Speaker 1: bedside nurses and we know what's important for bedside nurses. 509 00:33:28,960 --> 00:33:31,400 Speaker 1: I do want to say, like, there's four of us 510 00:33:31,440 --> 00:33:35,280 Speaker 1: who are running for the for the council presidents, but 511 00:33:35,960 --> 00:33:38,479 Speaker 1: we would not be even talking to you if we 512 00:33:38,520 --> 00:33:43,200 Speaker 1: didn't have like at least one hundred nurses all over 513 00:33:43,520 --> 00:33:46,280 Speaker 1: like the hospitals that we're based in, like doing the 514 00:33:46,320 --> 00:33:49,800 Speaker 1: work of building our campaign. So I do want to 515 00:33:49,800 --> 00:33:53,640 Speaker 1: point out that, like, because like our slate is like 516 00:33:54,120 --> 00:33:57,480 Speaker 1: free white guys and it's RAINA, and RAINA is like 517 00:33:57,720 --> 00:34:01,840 Speaker 1: and we want to make sure that we're not that 518 00:34:02,120 --> 00:34:05,600 Speaker 1: it's we made. The choice that we made was not 519 00:34:06,200 --> 00:34:09,239 Speaker 1: you know, us coming together as four individuals being like, 520 00:34:09,280 --> 00:34:12,680 Speaker 1: we should fix the union by ourselves. It was this 521 00:34:13,160 --> 00:34:16,000 Speaker 1: we keep mentioning labor notes, there's a healthcare worker chat 522 00:34:16,080 --> 00:34:19,920 Speaker 1: with a fair number of nurses in our union. And 523 00:34:20,080 --> 00:34:22,560 Speaker 1: we noticed that there was an election coming up. And 524 00:34:22,600 --> 00:34:25,640 Speaker 1: this is also at the time when both altbates was 525 00:34:25,719 --> 00:34:28,319 Speaker 1: having their issues. And then in Cook County we had 526 00:34:28,360 --> 00:34:34,120 Speaker 1: a particularly traumatic firing of a very popular staffer who 527 00:34:34,680 --> 00:34:41,319 Speaker 1: without any without any input from the local nurses or 528 00:34:41,600 --> 00:34:44,759 Speaker 1: elected local nurse leadership. And we got together and we 529 00:34:44,800 --> 00:34:46,480 Speaker 1: all were like, what are we going to do? This 530 00:34:46,560 --> 00:34:50,879 Speaker 1: is crazy? And we had people like we are like, well, 531 00:34:50,920 --> 00:34:53,960 Speaker 1: who would do? Like we have this opportunity and if 532 00:34:53,960 --> 00:34:55,960 Speaker 1: we run as a slate, we can do things like 533 00:34:56,080 --> 00:34:59,359 Speaker 1: get access to we can send emails out to other 534 00:34:59,440 --> 00:35:02,680 Speaker 1: nurses and break down those silos connect nurses from across 535 00:35:02,719 --> 00:35:07,360 Speaker 1: the country. And we're like, well, if we don't do anything, 536 00:35:07,920 --> 00:35:10,520 Speaker 1: we're kind of stuck in this kind of like square one. 537 00:35:11,320 --> 00:35:13,520 Speaker 1: You know, a few small hospitals talking to each other, 538 00:35:15,520 --> 00:35:17,839 Speaker 1: not small, but you know a few hospitals talking to 539 00:35:17,840 --> 00:35:20,680 Speaker 1: each other, still struggling against like these kind of silos 540 00:35:20,680 --> 00:35:24,480 Speaker 1: that have been constructed for us by staff and we 541 00:35:24,520 --> 00:35:27,040 Speaker 1: had a vote and there was you know, over twenty 542 00:35:27,080 --> 00:35:30,120 Speaker 1: nurses all together raise their hands and where like, we 543 00:35:30,160 --> 00:35:33,600 Speaker 1: could do this with an imperfect group of people that 544 00:35:33,640 --> 00:35:37,080 Speaker 1: we recognize asn't like the fully representative of everyone in 545 00:35:37,120 --> 00:35:41,160 Speaker 1: the union, but are fully committed to democratizing the union, 546 00:35:42,280 --> 00:35:47,200 Speaker 1: or we could sit and wait. And a nurse who 547 00:35:47,200 --> 00:35:49,239 Speaker 1: had been in the union for a very long time 548 00:35:49,840 --> 00:35:52,279 Speaker 1: and she's now retired, said, if you all don't take 549 00:35:52,320 --> 00:35:54,719 Speaker 1: this chance, you don't know what could happen in you know, 550 00:35:54,800 --> 00:35:58,480 Speaker 1: three years from now union could be completely different. And 551 00:35:58,520 --> 00:36:01,560 Speaker 1: so two thirds of everyone in that call said it's 552 00:36:01,600 --> 00:36:04,279 Speaker 1: time to go, and we don't care. We would rather 553 00:36:04,480 --> 00:36:08,640 Speaker 1: that you run and take that swing and maybe get 554 00:36:08,680 --> 00:36:11,279 Speaker 1: big for all of us. So a big part of 555 00:36:11,280 --> 00:36:15,839 Speaker 1: what we're doing is like I've got a meeting with 556 00:36:16,840 --> 00:36:19,680 Speaker 1: you know, cook counting nurses on Thursday, and they're all 557 00:36:19,680 --> 00:36:21,799 Speaker 1: basically going to come to me and tell me all 558 00:36:21,800 --> 00:36:24,359 Speaker 1: the shit that I need to do for them, not 559 00:36:24,440 --> 00:36:30,799 Speaker 1: the other way around. When you're the rank and file leadership, 560 00:36:31,560 --> 00:36:34,239 Speaker 1: you know, it's like taking that pyramid and you invert it, right. 561 00:36:34,719 --> 00:36:38,240 Speaker 1: The people who are matter the most are the regular 562 00:36:38,239 --> 00:36:42,840 Speaker 1: bedside nurses and all we can do as like people 563 00:36:42,880 --> 00:36:45,400 Speaker 1: who step up into that role is we take that. 564 00:36:45,880 --> 00:36:49,600 Speaker 1: We take that heat and put ourselves out there so 565 00:36:49,640 --> 00:36:52,200 Speaker 1: that we can enact what our co workers are asking 566 00:36:52,280 --> 00:36:54,840 Speaker 1: us for. I literally have co workers walking up to 567 00:36:54,920 --> 00:36:58,240 Speaker 1: me completely unsolicited. I'm a very like I'm not walking 568 00:36:58,280 --> 00:37:00,440 Speaker 1: around telling I like I told a few people up 569 00:37:00,480 --> 00:37:02,680 Speaker 1: front in the beginning, because I was like, all right, 570 00:37:02,680 --> 00:37:04,840 Speaker 1: you're about to see my face on some flyers, let 571 00:37:04,920 --> 00:37:09,239 Speaker 1: me tell you why. Um. But I now have coworkers 572 00:37:09,239 --> 00:37:10,840 Speaker 1: coming to me and they're like, John, you've got to 573 00:37:10,840 --> 00:37:13,600 Speaker 1: tell me what's going on because I heard a little 574 00:37:13,600 --> 00:37:15,319 Speaker 1: bit about it and I need to help you. I'm 575 00:37:15,360 --> 00:37:19,680 Speaker 1: just like, okay, it's very it's like it's a little 576 00:37:19,719 --> 00:37:21,920 Speaker 1: bit like a drug. But I have to be careful because, 577 00:37:22,000 --> 00:37:25,520 Speaker 1: like I like, I can't let this whole thing like 578 00:37:25,600 --> 00:37:27,640 Speaker 1: none of this. We all have to stay humble as 579 00:37:27,680 --> 00:37:31,000 Speaker 1: we're doing this. Because all four of us, John, all 580 00:37:31,000 --> 00:37:34,480 Speaker 1: four of us were volunteering to help other people to 581 00:37:34,600 --> 00:37:39,759 Speaker 1: run exactly. We were like, okay, we're here, you know, 582 00:37:40,040 --> 00:37:43,920 Speaker 1: John Mark raining on myself. We're here to help you. 583 00:37:43,960 --> 00:37:47,600 Speaker 1: Guys who's running now, I'm going to help you. We're 584 00:37:47,640 --> 00:37:50,320 Speaker 1: gonna help you and and then it's like the crickets, 585 00:37:50,440 --> 00:37:55,239 Speaker 1: you know, and it's like and it goes to show 586 00:37:55,320 --> 00:37:59,279 Speaker 1: exactly what happened. It goes to show how impoverished. The 587 00:37:59,280 --> 00:38:02,080 Speaker 1: internal to mycy of our union is that people who 588 00:38:02,360 --> 00:38:06,960 Speaker 1: are leaders already did not feel comfortable or prepared to 589 00:38:06,960 --> 00:38:09,759 Speaker 1: take on that kind of leadership role. You know, these 590 00:38:09,800 --> 00:38:12,120 Speaker 1: are nurses who have been in our union for decades, 591 00:38:13,440 --> 00:38:18,279 Speaker 1: who are taking fights to their bosses all the time already, 592 00:38:18,480 --> 00:38:20,759 Speaker 1: and they did not feel that they knew enough about 593 00:38:20,800 --> 00:38:26,480 Speaker 1: the union because there's an intentional I believe, like obscuring 594 00:38:26,600 --> 00:38:30,640 Speaker 1: of how the union works. And that's like how you 595 00:38:30,719 --> 00:38:32,719 Speaker 1: end up with a situation where people are like, well, 596 00:38:32,760 --> 00:38:35,080 Speaker 1: I guess we're just kicking the door down for all 597 00:38:35,080 --> 00:38:37,720 Speaker 1: these people who we know will be doing it better 598 00:38:37,880 --> 00:38:40,080 Speaker 1: when when we get it situated so that they can 599 00:38:40,080 --> 00:38:53,120 Speaker 1: do it better. It's amazing, though, to tell us that 600 00:38:53,480 --> 00:38:56,880 Speaker 1: an America and History class, or you have Civics class, 601 00:38:57,200 --> 00:38:59,799 Speaker 1: you learn about the US government, right, you know how 602 00:38:59,800 --> 00:39:03,640 Speaker 1: it functions, how it runs. But when it comes to 603 00:39:03,680 --> 00:39:06,920 Speaker 1: our union, we were all asking each other, you know, 604 00:39:06,960 --> 00:39:12,800 Speaker 1: we're putting pieces together. Oh wait, I know the council presidents. Yeah, well, 605 00:39:12,840 --> 00:39:15,400 Speaker 1: how does this person fit into it? How does the 606 00:39:15,480 --> 00:39:18,479 Speaker 1: board fit into this? Well, how does the election run? 607 00:39:19,120 --> 00:39:22,280 Speaker 1: How is it done? We had no We had to 608 00:39:22,320 --> 00:39:25,800 Speaker 1: search out the answers. We had to call all sorts 609 00:39:25,840 --> 00:39:28,799 Speaker 1: of people, and we were only getting bits and pieces. 610 00:39:29,560 --> 00:39:32,680 Speaker 1: There should be a clear outline of how you run 611 00:39:32,800 --> 00:39:36,520 Speaker 1: a democracy and a union. I mean, it shouldn't even 612 00:39:36,600 --> 00:39:40,880 Speaker 1: be that difficult. You know, obviously there'd be specific rules 613 00:39:40,920 --> 00:39:45,400 Speaker 1: for the union, but they shouldn't be occluded. They should 614 00:39:45,440 --> 00:39:49,360 Speaker 1: be you know, there shouldn't be occulted from the members. 615 00:39:49,440 --> 00:39:54,080 Speaker 1: We should clearly know how you step forward to be 616 00:39:54,520 --> 00:39:59,080 Speaker 1: a more of a contributing member to the union, to 617 00:39:59,239 --> 00:40:02,719 Speaker 1: run and to serve the others in the union. And 618 00:40:02,800 --> 00:40:06,720 Speaker 1: that was an amazing thing that we're finding out amongst 619 00:40:06,719 --> 00:40:10,319 Speaker 1: each other. It's like, wow, how does our union run? 620 00:40:10,560 --> 00:40:13,120 Speaker 1: I mean how? Why is it difficult to find out 621 00:40:13,160 --> 00:40:17,320 Speaker 1: these things? And I mean I don't think it's insurmountable 622 00:40:17,400 --> 00:40:21,000 Speaker 1: for us. I don't think that should disqualify us. I 623 00:40:21,040 --> 00:40:24,920 Speaker 1: don't think if we can step in and do healthcare 624 00:40:24,960 --> 00:40:28,400 Speaker 1: in a pandemic, we can very easily learn how to 625 00:40:29,200 --> 00:40:34,160 Speaker 1: how the union functions, and a quick, a quick little tutorial. 626 00:40:34,760 --> 00:40:36,319 Speaker 1: I don't think that's going to be a big deal 627 00:40:36,400 --> 00:40:40,080 Speaker 1: for us, but yeah, it's pretty amazing. If we're talking 628 00:40:40,120 --> 00:40:44,040 Speaker 1: about democracy in the Union. How is it that it 629 00:40:44,080 --> 00:40:47,880 Speaker 1: takes I mean, to find the buy laws. We can 630 00:40:47,920 --> 00:40:50,720 Speaker 1: all tell you it took a tremendous amount of effort 631 00:40:50,719 --> 00:40:53,760 Speaker 1: to find the by laws that are used runs by. 632 00:40:53,880 --> 00:40:56,320 Speaker 1: Hold On, hold on, let me tell sorry about the bylaws. 633 00:40:56,360 --> 00:41:00,880 Speaker 1: So we have a nurse in Chicago who decided to 634 00:41:00,880 --> 00:41:03,160 Speaker 1: make a pain of themselves about how to get the 635 00:41:03,160 --> 00:41:06,560 Speaker 1: by laws, and then instead they went to the union 636 00:41:06,760 --> 00:41:08,120 Speaker 1: be like, I want to see the by laws. I 637 00:41:08,160 --> 00:41:09,560 Speaker 1: want to see the by laws, and they were less 638 00:41:09,640 --> 00:41:12,280 Speaker 1: like you know like, and they give them the runaround. 639 00:41:13,560 --> 00:41:17,560 Speaker 1: And essentially they gave him he got a personally delivered 640 00:41:18,080 --> 00:41:21,120 Speaker 1: envelope that was like a photocopy of a photocopy of 641 00:41:21,120 --> 00:41:25,360 Speaker 1: the photocopy of the by laws. And it's funny because 642 00:41:25,560 --> 00:41:27,719 Speaker 1: the legally the by laws are all spopos to be 643 00:41:27,719 --> 00:41:31,520 Speaker 1: filed with the federal government. And like, from our pressure 644 00:41:31,520 --> 00:41:33,759 Speaker 1: and organizing to figure out how our union worked, they 645 00:41:33,760 --> 00:41:36,640 Speaker 1: had to publish the newest set of by laws and 646 00:41:36,920 --> 00:41:41,759 Speaker 1: on the federal reporting websites. I was in Oakland in 647 00:41:41,800 --> 00:41:44,279 Speaker 1: twenty nineteen for the Global Nurse Assembly, and there was 648 00:41:44,320 --> 00:41:46,680 Speaker 1: an after party and it was a bunch of staffers 649 00:41:46,719 --> 00:41:49,400 Speaker 1: and like, you know, some nurses and you know, just 650 00:41:49,640 --> 00:41:51,960 Speaker 1: chit chatting, and I was like, man, be really good. 651 00:41:52,000 --> 00:41:55,480 Speaker 1: I told the story about you know, like the you know, 652 00:41:55,520 --> 00:41:57,400 Speaker 1: the nurse you tried to get by finally got a 653 00:41:57,440 --> 00:41:59,600 Speaker 1: copy of the by laws to you know, some of 654 00:41:59,640 --> 00:42:01,719 Speaker 1: these one of these staffers, like, man, it'd be really 655 00:42:01,719 --> 00:42:04,280 Speaker 1: great if we, you know, could figure out how are 656 00:42:04,320 --> 00:42:06,880 Speaker 1: you know, getting hints for other union works, and just 657 00:42:06,920 --> 00:42:09,960 Speaker 1: as like, good luck with that, and they just disappeared. 658 00:42:10,520 --> 00:42:15,600 Speaker 1: Ways I'm not yeah, I mean because because what we're 659 00:42:15,640 --> 00:42:19,560 Speaker 1: finding is that at any staff that helped nurses learn 660 00:42:19,600 --> 00:42:23,919 Speaker 1: how the union works find themselves out of a job. 661 00:42:25,040 --> 00:42:28,120 Speaker 1: Like that's what's really that's what really sketches everyone out 662 00:42:28,280 --> 00:42:31,279 Speaker 1: is when like people, I mean, you all can tell 663 00:42:31,400 --> 00:42:38,000 Speaker 1: tell the story about the staffer who like got random foul. 664 00:42:39,680 --> 00:42:42,719 Speaker 1: So I will tell you that there are a lot 665 00:42:42,719 --> 00:42:48,120 Speaker 1: of great labor refers, a lot of really great people 666 00:42:48,160 --> 00:42:52,240 Speaker 1: out there, But to tell you that they would communicate 667 00:42:52,560 --> 00:42:55,719 Speaker 1: with us, because obviously I told you I've done all 668 00:42:55,760 --> 00:42:58,040 Speaker 1: these other actions, so I know a lot of people, 669 00:42:58,680 --> 00:43:01,440 Speaker 1: and they have my personal number just because we would 670 00:43:01,560 --> 00:43:03,799 Speaker 1: you know, when we're in other cities, you know, you 671 00:43:03,920 --> 00:43:07,719 Speaker 1: text each other and hey, we're at this place, now 672 00:43:07,760 --> 00:43:11,320 Speaker 1: where do we meet you? Etc. So we were getting 673 00:43:11,400 --> 00:43:16,960 Speaker 1: texts from some labor reps in the union saying, you know, 674 00:43:17,239 --> 00:43:20,399 Speaker 1: you guys need to stand tall. There are a lot 675 00:43:20,440 --> 00:43:24,239 Speaker 1: of us supporting you. We can't come out and publicly 676 00:43:24,280 --> 00:43:28,400 Speaker 1: support you because we'll get fired. What So. Yeah, so 677 00:43:28,600 --> 00:43:31,320 Speaker 1: we were getting these texts from the labor reps saying 678 00:43:31,760 --> 00:43:33,920 Speaker 1: what they're doing to you is wrong, and they were 679 00:43:35,080 --> 00:43:39,760 Speaker 1: you know, we actually got together and we we wanted 680 00:43:39,760 --> 00:43:42,600 Speaker 1: to go out on strike in October, and we were 681 00:43:42,640 --> 00:43:47,640 Speaker 1: getting this runaround from a group of this I thought 682 00:43:47,640 --> 00:43:50,719 Speaker 1: they were it was just an inner cabal. Little did 683 00:43:50,760 --> 00:43:53,400 Speaker 1: I know that it probably extends throughout the you know, 684 00:43:53,440 --> 00:43:57,200 Speaker 1: the organization, but that they were telling us that there 685 00:43:57,280 --> 00:44:00,160 Speaker 1: was no need for a strike, and it seemed they 686 00:44:00,160 --> 00:44:03,080 Speaker 1: were trying to just pressure us into taking a pretty 687 00:44:04,280 --> 00:44:12,000 Speaker 1: lowball contract. And so we're getting push you know, the 688 00:44:12,000 --> 00:44:15,520 Speaker 1: good labor reps are texting us like stick it, stick 689 00:44:15,520 --> 00:44:18,880 Speaker 1: to it, stick to it. And we actually got a 690 00:44:18,920 --> 00:44:22,680 Speaker 1: postcard campaign and we actually drove up to the executive 691 00:44:22,719 --> 00:44:27,400 Speaker 1: director's house in Sacramento, knocked on our door and delivered 692 00:44:27,440 --> 00:44:31,520 Speaker 1: five hundred some postcards that we organized on our own, 693 00:44:31,640 --> 00:44:34,960 Speaker 1: not not with you know, it wasn't a union driven, 694 00:44:35,000 --> 00:44:39,200 Speaker 1: it was just nurses union, nurses driven, and we delivered 695 00:44:39,200 --> 00:44:43,000 Speaker 1: postcards saying we want to go out on stripe, and 696 00:44:43,239 --> 00:44:45,200 Speaker 1: the union, of course still fought us on it, but 697 00:44:45,280 --> 00:44:48,680 Speaker 1: we were allowed to go out on stripe. And there's 698 00:44:48,680 --> 00:44:52,640 Speaker 1: a video of us confronting the executive director at our 699 00:44:52,680 --> 00:44:56,440 Speaker 1: strike line, asking her why we were gagged, why the 700 00:44:56,440 --> 00:44:59,759 Speaker 1: mediator gagged us, and she clearly didn't know what was 701 00:44:59,760 --> 00:45:03,359 Speaker 1: going She said, the mediator wouldn't dag you, Why would 702 00:45:03,400 --> 00:45:06,000 Speaker 1: they gag you? So she didn't even know what was 703 00:45:06,120 --> 00:45:10,319 Speaker 1: going on at our table. We then got we were 704 00:45:10,400 --> 00:45:15,080 Speaker 1: contacted and they we were told, oh my god, they're 705 00:45:15,160 --> 00:45:18,440 Speaker 1: running around like chickens with their heads cut off because 706 00:45:18,520 --> 00:45:22,000 Speaker 1: they're petrified that they might use their jobs, that they've 707 00:45:22,040 --> 00:45:25,880 Speaker 1: been exposed to what they've been doing to you. And 708 00:45:26,400 --> 00:45:29,000 Speaker 1: so one of the labor reps that used to work 709 00:45:29,080 --> 00:45:32,879 Speaker 1: for us, she used to be at our hospital, and 710 00:45:32,920 --> 00:45:37,880 Speaker 1: then she moved along and she was at Suttersilano and 711 00:45:38,880 --> 00:45:41,800 Speaker 1: her nurses were asking Hey, did you see this video 712 00:45:42,440 --> 00:45:46,440 Speaker 1: of this speech Eric made on this you know, at 713 00:45:46,480 --> 00:45:50,719 Speaker 1: the strike line. And it was a speech where I 714 00:45:50,840 --> 00:45:54,680 Speaker 1: kind of excoriated the union about why they would gag us, 715 00:45:55,360 --> 00:45:58,360 Speaker 1: that that wasn't you know, we needed to be united 716 00:45:58,400 --> 00:46:02,240 Speaker 1: and we didn't need a union, you know, working behind 717 00:46:02,239 --> 00:46:05,839 Speaker 1: our back. They needed to stand with us. And so 718 00:46:07,200 --> 00:46:09,520 Speaker 1: she says, well, let's see. So she was looking at 719 00:46:09,560 --> 00:46:15,680 Speaker 1: the video on her Union cell phone and with the negotiators, 720 00:46:15,800 --> 00:46:19,760 Speaker 1: nurse negotiators at her hospitals at Arsalana, who were also 721 00:46:19,840 --> 00:46:22,840 Speaker 1: in negotiations with us that we weren't supposed to talk 722 00:46:22,880 --> 00:46:27,560 Speaker 1: to because you know, the mediator forbade us. So she's 723 00:46:27,600 --> 00:46:33,640 Speaker 1: showing the video and they thought because she was formerly 724 00:46:33,719 --> 00:46:37,000 Speaker 1: at our hospital, that she was our inside scoop for 725 00:46:37,040 --> 00:46:40,960 Speaker 1: all this information, I can swear to God and take 726 00:46:41,000 --> 00:46:44,759 Speaker 1: a lie detector test. I had one exchange with her 727 00:46:45,440 --> 00:46:49,800 Speaker 1: during like the twenty one months that we were negotiating, 728 00:46:50,239 --> 00:46:53,920 Speaker 1: and it was at a joint Bargaining Council meeting on 729 00:46:54,080 --> 00:46:58,680 Speaker 1: zoom where they kept the union kept muting us on 730 00:46:58,880 --> 00:47:02,160 Speaker 1: zoom and prevent and preventing us from writing in the 731 00:47:02,239 --> 00:47:03,920 Speaker 1: chat because we were saying we want to go out 732 00:47:04,000 --> 00:47:06,080 Speaker 1: on strike. We want to go out on strike. And 733 00:47:06,200 --> 00:47:07,960 Speaker 1: next thing you know, we would find out we couldn't 734 00:47:07,960 --> 00:47:11,640 Speaker 1: type in the in the chat. So I texted her 735 00:47:11,640 --> 00:47:15,440 Speaker 1: and says, can you see this, I'm trying to write 736 00:47:15,440 --> 00:47:17,879 Speaker 1: in the chat and I'm forbidden from writing in the chat. 737 00:47:17,960 --> 00:47:21,680 Speaker 1: They muted me, they I can't type in and she goes, 738 00:47:21,719 --> 00:47:24,120 Speaker 1: I'm feel for you, buddy, I feel for you. That 739 00:47:24,239 --> 00:47:27,719 Speaker 1: was my only exchange with her that caused her and 740 00:47:27,840 --> 00:47:31,480 Speaker 1: the fact that her nurses asked her to look at 741 00:47:31,520 --> 00:47:34,560 Speaker 1: this video with them, that's what cost her her job. 742 00:47:35,400 --> 00:47:40,040 Speaker 1: She's it was. It was clearly guilt by association and 743 00:47:39,920 --> 00:47:44,280 Speaker 1: the charges were outrageous for her. We had labor reps 744 00:47:44,400 --> 00:47:49,520 Speaker 1: leave because they just felt that it was they couldn't 745 00:47:49,560 --> 00:47:54,240 Speaker 1: live with themselves with what they were doing to the nurses. 746 00:47:55,200 --> 00:47:58,280 Speaker 1: It was incredible for them that they're here to work 747 00:47:58,440 --> 00:48:01,680 Speaker 1: for the nurses, there to work for the most progressive 748 00:48:01,840 --> 00:48:07,080 Speaker 1: union in the country, and it was a fraud. That's 749 00:48:07,120 --> 00:48:10,000 Speaker 1: been like a big, like consistent problem is that we 750 00:48:10,080 --> 00:48:12,759 Speaker 1: know that they're busting their own like the staff are 751 00:48:12,800 --> 00:48:17,000 Speaker 1: supposed to have a union, The staff have their own contract, 752 00:48:17,040 --> 00:48:20,319 Speaker 1: and that's a normal thing inside unions, right, yeah, you know, 753 00:48:20,360 --> 00:48:24,000 Speaker 1: to keep you know, we believe in or that every 754 00:48:24,000 --> 00:48:26,560 Speaker 1: worker who you know works for wages should be in 755 00:48:26,640 --> 00:48:30,239 Speaker 1: a union. And we have seen time and again that 756 00:48:30,440 --> 00:48:35,160 Speaker 1: like the like the contracts, that they've busted their own unions, 757 00:48:35,800 --> 00:48:38,680 Speaker 1: so like that they've there was a slate that was 758 00:48:38,760 --> 00:48:44,960 Speaker 1: run of nurses in our not nurses of the staffers. 759 00:48:45,680 --> 00:48:47,520 Speaker 1: I think it was in twenty twenty one where they 760 00:48:47,560 --> 00:48:52,319 Speaker 1: were like trying to get something together to change you know, 761 00:48:52,400 --> 00:48:55,320 Speaker 1: things inside you know, how they relate to their management. 762 00:48:56,160 --> 00:49:01,080 Speaker 1: And and several of those uh staff are we're basically 763 00:49:01,080 --> 00:49:05,680 Speaker 1: illegally fired. So this is like I mean, and I 764 00:49:05,719 --> 00:49:08,480 Speaker 1: know you keep saying Jesus a lot, but like there's 765 00:49:08,480 --> 00:49:12,520 Speaker 1: a reason, you know me, I wouldn't be running into 766 00:49:12,520 --> 00:49:15,759 Speaker 1: this sort of situation if it wasn't like so like 767 00:49:16,239 --> 00:49:19,440 Speaker 1: out of this world. The stories that we hear, and 768 00:49:19,480 --> 00:49:23,279 Speaker 1: they're the same. This is what's disturbing, is it? And 769 00:49:23,320 --> 00:49:25,839 Speaker 1: it's because the union is baited. Like I was just 770 00:49:25,880 --> 00:49:28,560 Speaker 1: talking to a lawyer today. She was looking over the 771 00:49:28,600 --> 00:49:30,799 Speaker 1: by laws of our union and she's like, this is 772 00:49:30,800 --> 00:49:35,280 Speaker 1: set up like a local like it's one big local union. 773 00:49:36,080 --> 00:49:39,120 Speaker 1: It's got like a tiny little committee of people who 774 00:49:39,160 --> 00:49:43,160 Speaker 1: are making the decisions of affect or we believe that 775 00:49:43,200 --> 00:49:47,160 Speaker 1: it's mostly the director non nurse director staff that make 776 00:49:47,200 --> 00:49:49,719 Speaker 1: the decisions, but these four people kind of rubber stamp 777 00:49:49,800 --> 00:49:54,319 Speaker 1: them and that they make decisions for one hundred and 778 00:49:54,360 --> 00:50:01,880 Speaker 1: fifty you know, thousands some on nurses and it's so centralized. 779 00:50:01,960 --> 00:50:04,400 Speaker 1: You know, this is one of the things is describe 780 00:50:04,440 --> 00:50:07,319 Speaker 1: as like it's almost irresponsible because you know, we live 781 00:50:07,360 --> 00:50:10,719 Speaker 1: in you know, you know, crazy times, and all it 782 00:50:10,760 --> 00:50:15,240 Speaker 1: takes is one wrong election or bad decision and Supreme 783 00:50:15,280 --> 00:50:18,719 Speaker 1: Court and it would literally our union could be dissolved 784 00:50:18,719 --> 00:50:22,279 Speaker 1: with like you know, if they just arrested you know 785 00:50:22,760 --> 00:50:26,560 Speaker 1: a handful of people and uh and froze our bank accounts. 786 00:50:27,320 --> 00:50:31,919 Speaker 1: And a big part of our goal is to help 787 00:50:31,960 --> 00:50:36,560 Speaker 1: disperse those resources out into foster more local leaderships so 788 00:50:36,600 --> 00:50:40,000 Speaker 1: that any event that you know, something you know, like 789 00:50:40,080 --> 00:50:44,280 Speaker 1: that terrible happens like that, we're not caught without anything. 790 00:50:44,560 --> 00:50:47,200 Speaker 1: Because the way it situated now is we have this 791 00:50:47,360 --> 00:50:51,880 Speaker 1: massive concentration of of all of the decision making and 792 00:50:52,000 --> 00:50:55,879 Speaker 1: resources in a very small group of hands, and most 793 00:50:55,880 --> 00:50:59,360 Speaker 1: of these people are are not have never been nurses, 794 00:51:00,080 --> 00:51:03,240 Speaker 1: or if they've been nurses. They've been out of practice 795 00:51:03,280 --> 00:51:07,160 Speaker 1: for so long that they wouldn't know how. I mean, 796 00:51:07,520 --> 00:51:10,160 Speaker 1: maybe they can put band aids on. I don't need to, like, 797 00:51:10,200 --> 00:51:11,960 Speaker 1: I don't want to disparage anybody. You know, a nurse 798 00:51:12,080 --> 00:51:14,279 Speaker 1: is a nurse. I know nurses. You know, you learn 799 00:51:14,320 --> 00:51:16,480 Speaker 1: it and you learn a lot of things. It's really important, 800 00:51:16,600 --> 00:51:20,080 Speaker 1: great skill, but there's something to be in practice. If I, 801 00:51:20,280 --> 00:51:23,120 Speaker 1: you know, I can walk back into the medical issue 802 00:51:23,160 --> 00:51:26,680 Speaker 1: I used to work in, you know now it's going 803 00:51:26,719 --> 00:51:29,279 Speaker 1: on like five years and be the same nurse that 804 00:51:29,320 --> 00:51:30,640 Speaker 1: I was when I was at the peak of my 805 00:51:30,680 --> 00:51:34,080 Speaker 1: practice there. And there's a real key thing too. I 806 00:51:34,120 --> 00:51:36,520 Speaker 1: think we're all committed. None of us are doing this 807 00:51:36,640 --> 00:51:40,880 Speaker 1: because we want to be the face of California Nurses 808 00:51:40,920 --> 00:51:45,440 Speaker 1: Association National Nurses United for the next twenty like thirty years. 809 00:51:45,719 --> 00:51:50,000 Speaker 1: We're doing this because we feel that there's a real 810 00:51:50,080 --> 00:51:55,400 Speaker 1: value to there being a continual turnover in leadership, new ideas, 811 00:51:55,480 --> 00:52:00,359 Speaker 1: people bringing in new energy. We think that nurses should 812 00:52:00,520 --> 00:52:03,719 Speaker 1: have the opportunity to work release time so that they 813 00:52:03,719 --> 00:52:06,600 Speaker 1: could see how the union works as staffers from the 814 00:52:06,640 --> 00:52:09,399 Speaker 1: inside and then go back to the regular jobs. We're 815 00:52:09,440 --> 00:52:12,640 Speaker 1: doing everything we can to like I like my job. 816 00:52:12,680 --> 00:52:13,920 Speaker 1: I think my job is great. I don't want to 817 00:52:14,000 --> 00:52:18,239 Speaker 1: leave my job. But doing what we can to bring 818 00:52:18,640 --> 00:52:24,680 Speaker 1: our mentality as those bedside nurses to the sensibility of 819 00:52:24,760 --> 00:52:27,680 Speaker 1: running the union, because nursing does give you a lot 820 00:52:27,680 --> 00:52:31,400 Speaker 1: of really powerful tools, as like you have to be 821 00:52:31,400 --> 00:52:34,480 Speaker 1: able to listen to people. We're not listening a lot tonight, 822 00:52:34,560 --> 00:52:35,759 Speaker 1: but you know, we've got to talk and get the 823 00:52:35,760 --> 00:52:40,120 Speaker 1: word out. Being able to kind of see. A big 824 00:52:40,160 --> 00:52:41,920 Speaker 1: thing we see is like, you know, you have a 825 00:52:41,960 --> 00:52:45,920 Speaker 1: lot of people who will tell you things and then 826 00:52:46,160 --> 00:52:48,640 Speaker 1: they act in a different way. And that's a big 827 00:52:48,680 --> 00:52:52,359 Speaker 1: part of nursing practices, being able to understand what people's 828 00:52:52,400 --> 00:52:56,680 Speaker 1: real deal is, and you know, it's kind of that's 829 00:52:56,719 --> 00:52:58,520 Speaker 1: one of the things where it's real frustrating, is like 830 00:52:59,160 --> 00:53:02,799 Speaker 1: we know when people are lying to us, Like I know, 831 00:53:03,040 --> 00:53:06,000 Speaker 1: we all know when like the staff are lying to us. 832 00:53:06,520 --> 00:53:10,640 Speaker 1: Nurses do have bullshit detectors, that's for sure. You know. 833 00:53:10,680 --> 00:53:13,480 Speaker 1: I slept through the class in nursing school where they 834 00:53:13,480 --> 00:53:14,840 Speaker 1: teach you how to grow eyes in the back of 835 00:53:14,880 --> 00:53:18,520 Speaker 1: your head. The class I slept through where they teach 836 00:53:18,560 --> 00:53:21,000 Speaker 1: you to get a through arm. And I really regret 837 00:53:21,120 --> 00:53:24,080 Speaker 1: sleeping through the class where they teach you how nurse 838 00:53:24,120 --> 00:53:27,560 Speaker 1: mitosis like being able to asexually reproduce an extra nurse. 839 00:53:28,560 --> 00:53:30,960 Speaker 1: But I definitely didn't sleep through the class where I 840 00:53:30,960 --> 00:53:34,040 Speaker 1: can learn where I can see when someone is saying 841 00:53:34,080 --> 00:53:36,760 Speaker 1: one thing and then but it's like what they're fucking 842 00:53:36,800 --> 00:53:39,120 Speaker 1: lying to me? Yeah, And that's a that's like a 843 00:53:39,800 --> 00:53:42,479 Speaker 1: constant theme. And that's one of the things that's driving 844 00:53:42,520 --> 00:53:44,360 Speaker 1: a lot of our organizing is that a lot of 845 00:53:44,360 --> 00:53:47,240 Speaker 1: people are tired of just being lied to by people 846 00:53:47,280 --> 00:53:50,960 Speaker 1: who were paying their paychecks. And it's like and it's 847 00:53:51,000 --> 00:53:55,640 Speaker 1: like they think that we I mean, we have staff informants, right, 848 00:53:55,680 --> 00:53:59,239 Speaker 1: we know people inside staff who are allied with us. 849 00:53:59,640 --> 00:54:01,799 Speaker 1: We know how they talk about us when we're not there. 850 00:54:02,400 --> 00:54:04,640 Speaker 1: They talk about us like we can't figure this shit out, 851 00:54:05,040 --> 00:54:07,160 Speaker 1: And it's like, motherfucker. I know how to keep a 852 00:54:07,200 --> 00:54:11,480 Speaker 1: person alive who like who shouldn't be alive, Like I 853 00:54:11,560 --> 00:54:14,080 Speaker 1: know how to walk a family through like you know, 854 00:54:14,200 --> 00:54:17,799 Speaker 1: multiple family members with conflicting opinions through like an end 855 00:54:17,800 --> 00:54:21,279 Speaker 1: of life discussion, and along with a doctor who can't 856 00:54:21,320 --> 00:54:23,560 Speaker 1: really make up his mind, like you don't think it 857 00:54:23,680 --> 00:54:27,600 Speaker 1: while I've got you know, like multiple pressors and like 858 00:54:27,680 --> 00:54:30,839 Speaker 1: continuous dialysis. You don't think I can't figure out, Like 859 00:54:30,880 --> 00:54:33,520 Speaker 1: when you are like telling us one thing and then 860 00:54:33,520 --> 00:54:36,560 Speaker 1: another thing's happening. We know why they're canceling meetings right now. 861 00:54:37,000 --> 00:54:39,080 Speaker 1: They don't want us talking to each other where we 862 00:54:39,200 --> 00:54:42,600 Speaker 1: get that and this is kind of like it's it's 863 00:54:42,640 --> 00:54:47,560 Speaker 1: almost like a feminist practice, like of women talking to 864 00:54:47,560 --> 00:54:52,080 Speaker 1: each other makes men nervous, right, And it's like nurses 865 00:54:52,120 --> 00:54:56,279 Speaker 1: talking to each other makes management nervous, and it sure 866 00:54:56,320 --> 00:54:58,759 Speaker 1: as hell is making our union nervous. We want our 867 00:54:58,840 --> 00:55:01,279 Speaker 1: union to be encouraging nurses talking to each other and 868 00:55:01,320 --> 00:55:05,600 Speaker 1: not like discouraging it. And anytime someone is discouraging people 869 00:55:05,719 --> 00:55:09,680 Speaker 1: from talking to each other who have similar concerns, that 870 00:55:09,840 --> 00:55:12,640 Speaker 1: is an immediate you know, like Eric was saying the 871 00:55:12,680 --> 00:55:14,680 Speaker 1: red flags. It's like this is the kind of thing 872 00:55:14,719 --> 00:55:17,600 Speaker 1: that like this, it's like an almost an abusive relationship. 873 00:55:18,719 --> 00:55:20,840 Speaker 1: You know, I would not be running if it wasn't 874 00:55:20,840 --> 00:55:24,719 Speaker 1: this intense of a problem this has been. It could 875 00:55:24,719 --> 00:55:28,040 Speaker 1: happen here. Join us tomorrow for two of the interview, 876 00:55:28,120 --> 00:55:30,680 Speaker 1: where Shift Change discusses more of their vision for what 877 00:55:30,719 --> 00:55:33,839 Speaker 1: the union could be in the meantime, you can find 878 00:55:33,880 --> 00:55:36,879 Speaker 1: us on Twitter or Instagram That Happen Here pod, and 879 00:55:36,960 --> 00:55:39,000 Speaker 1: you can find cool Zone Media the same place as 880 00:55:39,000 --> 00:55:41,680 Speaker 1: at cool Zone Media. We've also posted a link in 881 00:55:41,719 --> 00:55:43,759 Speaker 1: the description to Shift Changes go fund me if you 882 00:55:43,800 --> 00:55:50,480 Speaker 1: want to help support their campaign. It could Happen Here 883 00:55:50,480 --> 00:55:53,160 Speaker 1: as a production of cool Zone Media. For more podcasts 884 00:55:53,160 --> 00:55:56,279 Speaker 1: from cool Zone Media, visit our website cool Zonemedia dot com, 885 00:55:56,400 --> 00:55:59,040 Speaker 1: or check us out on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, 886 00:55:59,120 --> 00:56:02,200 Speaker 1: or wherever you listen podcasts. You can find sources for 887 00:56:02,239 --> 00:56:05,279 Speaker 1: It could Happen Here, updated monthly at coolson Meta dot 888 00:56:05,320 --> 00:56:07,520 Speaker 1: com slash sources. Thanks for listening