1 00:00:05,280 --> 00:00:07,920 Speaker 1: Welcome back to it could happen here. We now continue 2 00:00:07,920 --> 00:00:12,280 Speaker 1: our conversation with the team from Shift Change Enjoy. Outside 3 00:00:12,280 --> 00:00:16,040 Speaker 1: of the obvious, the union is doing landlordism for some reason, 4 00:00:16,160 --> 00:00:19,080 Speaker 1: part which is just sort of I can't get over, like, well, 5 00:00:19,160 --> 00:00:21,840 Speaker 1: what do you what do you mean her forty four 6 00:00:21,880 --> 00:00:23,920 Speaker 1: billion dollars? The thing you're doing is being a landlord. 7 00:00:24,400 --> 00:00:26,360 Speaker 1: But yeah, I mean it seems like they're you know, 8 00:00:26,440 --> 00:00:28,440 Speaker 1: like out of one side of their mouth saying this 9 00:00:28,520 --> 00:00:30,160 Speaker 1: is a democratic union. In their side of their mouth, 10 00:00:30,160 --> 00:00:34,879 Speaker 1: they're doing political purges. They're like doing everything possible to 11 00:00:34,920 --> 00:00:37,800 Speaker 1: make sure people don't know how the democratic process works, 12 00:00:37,960 --> 00:00:41,800 Speaker 1: which I think is a pretty like basic precept of 13 00:00:42,120 --> 00:00:46,280 Speaker 1: democracy is that if if if it's impossible to figure 14 00:00:46,320 --> 00:00:48,040 Speaker 1: out how the system actually works, it's not it's not 15 00:00:48,280 --> 00:00:53,320 Speaker 1: it's not actually a democracy in any real sense. Yeah, 16 00:00:53,360 --> 00:00:55,640 Speaker 1: and you know, yeah, And this is the thing you're saying, 17 00:00:55,720 --> 00:00:58,120 Speaker 1: is like they see they seem to be acting like bosses, 18 00:00:58,200 --> 00:01:02,400 Speaker 1: like they're firing people. They get nervous when people start organizing, 19 00:01:02,440 --> 00:01:05,560 Speaker 1: which is not a thing that you would think a 20 00:01:05,680 --> 00:01:08,880 Speaker 1: union would be ecstatic if it's like, oh hey there's 21 00:01:08,880 --> 00:01:11,880 Speaker 1: this winter's like organized themselves I don't know, it's just 22 00:01:12,880 --> 00:01:15,800 Speaker 1: I mean, there's a there's a there's a mentality inside 23 00:01:16,040 --> 00:01:18,640 Speaker 1: among some people and even among some of the nurses 24 00:01:18,680 --> 00:01:22,280 Speaker 1: that like, you know, when people are causing problems or 25 00:01:24,080 --> 00:01:28,840 Speaker 1: you know, it's the Yeah, it's it's a very it's 26 00:01:28,840 --> 00:01:31,959 Speaker 1: a very perplexing situation to be in, and many of 27 00:01:32,040 --> 00:01:34,120 Speaker 1: us it's taken us years to really figure it out, 28 00:01:34,200 --> 00:01:37,120 Speaker 1: because you don't we all come to work right to 29 00:01:37,160 --> 00:01:39,560 Speaker 1: do our job, you know, I don't come to work 30 00:01:39,600 --> 00:01:42,480 Speaker 1: to like figure out every like little nuanced thing about 31 00:01:42,480 --> 00:01:45,120 Speaker 1: what's going on inside my union. I didn't become a 32 00:01:45,319 --> 00:01:48,760 Speaker 1: union nurse because I wanted to be like a hero 33 00:01:49,240 --> 00:01:52,640 Speaker 1: union member. I did it because it was down the 34 00:01:52,640 --> 00:01:54,120 Speaker 1: street and it was a good job, and like I 35 00:01:54,280 --> 00:01:56,680 Speaker 1: wanted to be a nurse more than anything in the world. 36 00:01:58,520 --> 00:02:00,920 Speaker 1: So you know, this is but this is what we do, 37 00:02:01,000 --> 00:02:04,000 Speaker 1: and this is why things like labor notes and learning 38 00:02:04,000 --> 00:02:07,400 Speaker 1: how your union works is really important. We've been self 39 00:02:07,520 --> 00:02:09,960 Speaker 1: educating ourselves. Like it's almost like you have to become 40 00:02:09,960 --> 00:02:14,560 Speaker 1: a jail house lawyer, right, yeah, Like yeah, we've been 41 00:02:14,600 --> 00:02:17,320 Speaker 1: sharing our favorite resources for like how do you learn 42 00:02:17,320 --> 00:02:20,880 Speaker 1: about how union works or what your rights are and 43 00:02:21,120 --> 00:02:23,519 Speaker 1: like we're basically taking notes for what we're going to 44 00:02:23,600 --> 00:02:25,760 Speaker 1: have to do when we if we get in power 45 00:02:26,320 --> 00:02:29,800 Speaker 1: inside the union to educate all the nurses in our union. 46 00:02:30,120 --> 00:02:32,000 Speaker 1: One of the things a little too. I mean, every 47 00:02:32,040 --> 00:02:34,320 Speaker 1: time I talk with people about this to try and 48 00:02:34,320 --> 00:02:37,160 Speaker 1: give little tips and tricks. Don't leave your staff are 49 00:02:37,160 --> 00:02:40,480 Speaker 1: a loan in a at the negotiating table. They'll tell 50 00:02:40,520 --> 00:02:43,000 Speaker 1: you everything's going great, go get go, get some dinner, 51 00:02:43,360 --> 00:02:45,720 Speaker 1: and you come back and you can't do regressive bargaining. 52 00:02:45,720 --> 00:02:49,160 Speaker 1: You can't unbargain like a thing when someone's been empowered 53 00:02:49,160 --> 00:02:54,320 Speaker 1: to decide something for you. And this is where especially 54 00:02:54,360 --> 00:02:59,480 Speaker 1: new new units in in countries or parts of the 55 00:02:59,480 --> 00:03:03,440 Speaker 1: country with strong union culture are finding that they'll step 56 00:03:03,480 --> 00:03:05,640 Speaker 1: away from the bargaining table and they'll come back and 57 00:03:05,919 --> 00:03:08,000 Speaker 1: all these decisions will be made that they don't have 58 00:03:08,040 --> 00:03:11,120 Speaker 1: any you can't go back on it. It's like literally 59 00:03:11,160 --> 00:03:16,640 Speaker 1: no basis in like in union negotiations. No, and so 60 00:03:17,160 --> 00:03:20,400 Speaker 1: there's no such thing as regressive bargaining. If I offer, 61 00:03:20,480 --> 00:03:24,360 Speaker 1: if I say that I want a you know, you 62 00:03:24,440 --> 00:03:28,440 Speaker 1: offer a fifty percent increase in fifty cent an hour 63 00:03:28,639 --> 00:03:34,160 Speaker 1: increase for floating to another union unit, I can't turn 64 00:03:34,200 --> 00:03:37,960 Speaker 1: around and you can't offer me forty five cents the 65 00:03:38,080 --> 00:03:41,960 Speaker 1: next go round. You cannot go back if you said 66 00:03:42,000 --> 00:03:44,400 Speaker 1: fifty percent, it has to be you know, more than 67 00:03:44,440 --> 00:03:47,280 Speaker 1: fifty percent on the next offer, or you just say 68 00:03:47,320 --> 00:03:51,000 Speaker 1: that's my final offer. So you know, the idea of 69 00:03:51,040 --> 00:03:55,520 Speaker 1: regressive bargaining is I have to tell you it's amazing, 70 00:03:55,680 --> 00:04:00,880 Speaker 1: is that when we negotiate against Sutter in twenty eleven 71 00:04:00,920 --> 00:04:06,080 Speaker 1: through twenty thirteen, we had multiple cases of ulps filed 72 00:04:06,080 --> 00:04:13,040 Speaker 1: for regressive bargaining on their part. They constantly made these 73 00:04:13,080 --> 00:04:16,880 Speaker 1: mistakes which we as nurses and the labor reps caught. 74 00:04:18,279 --> 00:04:22,799 Speaker 1: And now for us, it's so important that we don't 75 00:04:23,560 --> 00:04:29,159 Speaker 1: regressive bargain regressive bargaining on our own members here. We 76 00:04:29,240 --> 00:04:32,839 Speaker 1: need to be moving forward. We should be making quantum 77 00:04:32,920 --> 00:04:36,640 Speaker 1: leaps and bounds as nurses. Well, what we've gone through, 78 00:04:37,640 --> 00:04:42,479 Speaker 1: we're supposedly the most trusted profession in the country. I 79 00:04:42,520 --> 00:04:45,040 Speaker 1: think it's for the past twenty years. The only time 80 00:04:45,680 --> 00:04:49,440 Speaker 1: we have not been the most progressive or the most 81 00:04:49,480 --> 00:04:53,839 Speaker 1: respected profession was in two thousand and one. And you 82 00:04:53,880 --> 00:04:57,320 Speaker 1: can obviously guess that it was firemen. It was firemen, 83 00:04:58,360 --> 00:05:00,760 Speaker 1: But it's like twenty five years or so in a row, 84 00:05:00,839 --> 00:05:05,560 Speaker 1: we've been the most trusted profession. It's because, you know, 85 00:05:06,040 --> 00:05:09,360 Speaker 1: how can you not trust somebody who's cleaning you up 86 00:05:09,400 --> 00:05:13,000 Speaker 1: when you soiled yourself in the bed, who's holding your 87 00:05:13,000 --> 00:05:18,799 Speaker 1: hand when you're scared. That's why we're the most trusted profession, 88 00:05:19,400 --> 00:05:22,479 Speaker 1: and we should be the most respected for what we do. 89 00:05:24,600 --> 00:05:27,960 Speaker 1: It's just amazing that our union can't carry us through that. 90 00:05:28,520 --> 00:05:35,000 Speaker 1: Our union was formed in a revolution that we overthrew 91 00:05:35,520 --> 00:05:41,720 Speaker 1: and kicked out management nurses and formed the California Nurses Association, 92 00:05:42,400 --> 00:05:46,839 Speaker 1: the bargaining part of the organization. The association broke away 93 00:05:46,920 --> 00:05:51,520 Speaker 1: from the management part and we twirled her at all 94 00:05:51,640 --> 00:05:55,280 Speaker 1: as a wonderful example somebody who was part of that revolution. 95 00:05:56,160 --> 00:06:00,880 Speaker 1: And for about twenty over twenty some years, we were 96 00:06:01,040 --> 00:06:05,560 Speaker 1: a rapidly progressive union. We didn't have all the rank 97 00:06:05,600 --> 00:06:08,800 Speaker 1: and file things that we should have had in the union, 98 00:06:08,920 --> 00:06:13,800 Speaker 1: but it was in the right direction for nurses. And 99 00:06:13,839 --> 00:06:16,680 Speaker 1: we've kind of made in the past ten years this 100 00:06:18,080 --> 00:06:23,679 Speaker 1: U turn and the Association, which I think is bad 101 00:06:23,720 --> 00:06:28,320 Speaker 1: for nurses. We need to be going forward, and we 102 00:06:28,360 --> 00:06:32,520 Speaker 1: have new nurses and new a new generation that is 103 00:06:32,600 --> 00:06:36,560 Speaker 1: joining the union and they need to be a part 104 00:06:36,600 --> 00:06:40,039 Speaker 1: of it. And they can't look at me and say 105 00:06:40,080 --> 00:06:42,720 Speaker 1: that that old fogi that's you know, been in the 106 00:06:42,800 --> 00:06:46,920 Speaker 1: union for thirty some years. You know that I'll be 107 00:06:46,960 --> 00:06:48,920 Speaker 1: doing the work for them. They need to be active 108 00:06:48,960 --> 00:06:51,240 Speaker 1: in that union and they need to love the idea 109 00:06:51,240 --> 00:06:55,159 Speaker 1: of solidarity, you know, out of the fires of desperation, 110 00:06:55,320 --> 00:06:58,800 Speaker 1: burn hope and solidarity. It was one of the ladies said, 111 00:06:59,680 --> 00:07:04,479 Speaker 1: I think sharing Borough from Australia, an Australian labor activists, 112 00:07:04,480 --> 00:07:09,320 Speaker 1: said that we need to have every union member. I 113 00:07:09,360 --> 00:07:11,480 Speaker 1: don't think every one of them has to be rabbit 114 00:07:11,520 --> 00:07:14,120 Speaker 1: about it, but they should be aware that they need 115 00:07:14,160 --> 00:07:18,640 Speaker 1: to stand tall and support each other, and not just 116 00:07:19,520 --> 00:07:22,440 Speaker 1: even they need to support the non union nurses they 117 00:07:22,480 --> 00:07:25,120 Speaker 1: need to get. We need to get more nurses unionized. 118 00:07:26,080 --> 00:07:32,360 Speaker 1: The problem with unions is there's not enough unions out there. 119 00:07:32,400 --> 00:07:35,160 Speaker 1: There's not enough people in the unions. We need to 120 00:07:35,160 --> 00:07:39,280 Speaker 1: get more nurses unionized and our union hasn't been able 121 00:07:39,320 --> 00:07:42,880 Speaker 1: to do that in quite a while. We haven't We've 122 00:07:42,920 --> 00:07:45,400 Speaker 1: been raiding a lot of other unions, but we need 123 00:07:45,400 --> 00:07:51,360 Speaker 1: to get out there and get people in the South unionized. 124 00:07:52,120 --> 00:07:54,920 Speaker 1: We need to get other nurses and you know in 125 00:07:54,920 --> 00:08:00,080 Speaker 1: the Midwest organized that aren't unionized yet, we have a 126 00:08:00,160 --> 00:08:02,840 Speaker 1: bigger vision as bedside nurses, and I think that our 127 00:08:03,600 --> 00:08:08,240 Speaker 1: our national union has I'm only as strong as the 128 00:08:08,280 --> 00:08:11,960 Speaker 1: person next to me. I need support. As John said, Yeah, 129 00:08:11,960 --> 00:08:16,280 Speaker 1: we're four people running for the Council of Presidents, but 130 00:08:17,120 --> 00:08:23,960 Speaker 1: behind us, there's there's so many nurses supporting us. Nurses 131 00:08:24,000 --> 00:08:27,960 Speaker 1: are texting me all the time, Hey, give me some pliers, 132 00:08:27,960 --> 00:08:30,040 Speaker 1: give me some buttons. I want to pass them out. 133 00:08:31,600 --> 00:08:34,679 Speaker 1: It's it's important for us. I know we're we're at 134 00:08:34,679 --> 00:08:38,439 Speaker 1: a disadvantage we don't have. You know, the people were 135 00:08:38,520 --> 00:08:42,560 Speaker 1: running against even though it's illegal for them to have 136 00:08:42,640 --> 00:08:47,199 Speaker 1: the union promote them, they're obviously going to have that 137 00:08:47,320 --> 00:08:50,320 Speaker 1: advantage like a city president, because they're going to be 138 00:08:50,360 --> 00:08:54,559 Speaker 1: in the National Nurse magazine, going around the country, you know, 139 00:08:54,840 --> 00:08:58,240 Speaker 1: doing the things they do as sitting presidents, so they're 140 00:08:58,280 --> 00:09:01,880 Speaker 1: going to get that free publicity. I wish our union 141 00:09:02,240 --> 00:09:05,079 Speaker 1: presidents went around the country because as far as I know, 142 00:09:05,360 --> 00:09:09,160 Speaker 1: they've never come here at Chicago. Yeah, I think the 143 00:09:09,200 --> 00:09:11,440 Speaker 1: only time we beg to Chicago's when we had that 144 00:09:11,559 --> 00:09:16,439 Speaker 1: People Power convention there and that was my first visit 145 00:09:16,480 --> 00:09:19,959 Speaker 1: back to Chicago, and I think ten years was when 146 00:09:20,000 --> 00:09:24,360 Speaker 1: I went there. And it's amazing. Is it should be 147 00:09:24,920 --> 00:09:30,640 Speaker 1: our union should rotate, rotate where they have their their 148 00:09:31,120 --> 00:09:33,920 Speaker 1: their conventions. They should we should be all around the country. 149 00:09:34,000 --> 00:09:37,040 Speaker 1: We should be going to the south and having conventions 150 00:09:37,120 --> 00:09:42,520 Speaker 1: so that we can attract people. Um. I think it's important. 151 00:09:42,559 --> 00:09:46,600 Speaker 1: We need to make inroads. You know, I know a 152 00:09:46,600 --> 00:09:48,479 Speaker 1: lot of it is they're going to say the pandemic, 153 00:09:48,520 --> 00:09:56,200 Speaker 1: and I think the pandemic did hasten this siloing, and 154 00:09:56,360 --> 00:09:59,240 Speaker 1: you know, some of it was a little understandable. But 155 00:09:59,360 --> 00:10:01,640 Speaker 1: even when it is evident that they should have come 156 00:10:01,640 --> 00:10:07,480 Speaker 1: out of the borough, they never did. The people have 157 00:10:07,559 --> 00:10:12,160 Speaker 1: been saying how tired they are from the pandemic, right, Like, 158 00:10:12,400 --> 00:10:14,400 Speaker 1: I don't know how they could have been tired, but 159 00:10:14,559 --> 00:10:17,560 Speaker 1: the union could have been tired when they were just 160 00:10:17,640 --> 00:10:22,040 Speaker 1: having zoom calls. No, No, the nurses are saying that 161 00:10:22,080 --> 00:10:25,800 Speaker 1: they're tired. Like But here's what's interesting. This is a 162 00:10:25,840 --> 00:10:28,040 Speaker 1: thing that I'm seeing in real time as we're doing 163 00:10:28,040 --> 00:10:31,920 Speaker 1: this work, is that nurses who have been exhausted and 164 00:10:32,000 --> 00:10:34,840 Speaker 1: some of the most beat down, like like nurses who 165 00:10:34,840 --> 00:10:41,880 Speaker 1: are like in the worst situations here in Chicago, are tired. 166 00:10:42,480 --> 00:10:45,480 Speaker 1: But then they hear something interesting is going on with 167 00:10:45,520 --> 00:10:47,920 Speaker 1: the union that is actually something that they have a 168 00:10:48,040 --> 00:10:51,839 Speaker 1: say in, which is very unusual in our union, and 169 00:10:52,000 --> 00:10:55,360 Speaker 1: people get very excited. So I'm having coworkers coming up 170 00:10:55,400 --> 00:11:00,000 Speaker 1: to me who are the least interested in union business 171 00:11:00,440 --> 00:11:04,880 Speaker 1: until maybe it's time for a strike. And you know, 172 00:11:04,960 --> 00:11:08,360 Speaker 1: it's interesting because like when we did our strike organizing 173 00:11:08,440 --> 00:11:12,760 Speaker 1: twenty nineteen, the first strike in Chicago's of nurses in 174 00:11:13,120 --> 00:11:17,760 Speaker 1: like forty years in Chicago. You know, they kept it 175 00:11:17,800 --> 00:11:21,000 Speaker 1: would call these small kind of symbolic actions, and they 176 00:11:21,040 --> 00:11:24,800 Speaker 1: call them stress tests or structure tests for like, you know, 177 00:11:25,000 --> 00:11:27,679 Speaker 1: we're going to do We're going to do a press 178 00:11:27,679 --> 00:11:29,480 Speaker 1: conference and you have like, you know, a handful of 179 00:11:29,559 --> 00:11:31,520 Speaker 1: nurses come out for the press conference. He like ten 180 00:11:31,600 --> 00:11:34,360 Speaker 1: or fifteen nurses would come out and they're like, oh, 181 00:11:34,400 --> 00:11:37,480 Speaker 1: they're all wringing their hands. And then we start started 182 00:11:37,480 --> 00:11:41,720 Speaker 1: calling pickets and then we start blowing past our turnout numbers. 183 00:11:42,040 --> 00:11:45,360 Speaker 1: And then when we did our strike, they were expecting 184 00:11:45,400 --> 00:11:50,080 Speaker 1: eight hundred nurses with twelve fourteen hundred nurses, more nurses 185 00:11:50,080 --> 00:11:52,600 Speaker 1: than ever been in anyone place in our hospital like 186 00:11:52,640 --> 00:11:55,040 Speaker 1: it was like a giant party. So it's kind of 187 00:11:55,080 --> 00:11:58,040 Speaker 1: like when people have know that there's something that really 188 00:11:58,360 --> 00:12:01,960 Speaker 1: has like they has a stake in, right, there's an 189 00:12:02,000 --> 00:12:07,480 Speaker 1: infinite amount of energy almost and this election is really 190 00:12:07,559 --> 00:12:10,880 Speaker 1: kind of like we can't make the buttons fast enough 191 00:12:11,720 --> 00:12:14,920 Speaker 1: to give away, like they keep people keep coming up 192 00:12:14,960 --> 00:12:16,800 Speaker 1: and they're like, here, give me a handful. I've got 193 00:12:16,920 --> 00:12:20,880 Speaker 1: coworkers and we're doing there's you know, let's get the 194 00:12:20,920 --> 00:12:23,280 Speaker 1: pictures of everyone with their nurse with their with their 195 00:12:23,280 --> 00:12:27,640 Speaker 1: shift change buttons vote shift change, and you know, we're 196 00:12:27,640 --> 00:12:31,040 Speaker 1: turning that stuff into we're getting ramped up and prepared 197 00:12:31,160 --> 00:12:35,280 Speaker 1: for like our social media like outreach, and this is 198 00:12:35,320 --> 00:12:37,440 Speaker 1: part of it, is like getting people to see like, hey, 199 00:12:37,440 --> 00:12:41,640 Speaker 1: there are people out there who want to do something 200 00:12:41,679 --> 00:12:44,480 Speaker 1: different and that put you, like as a as a 201 00:12:44,520 --> 00:12:47,400 Speaker 1: bedside nurse, this is our opportunity to get you into 202 00:12:47,440 --> 00:12:49,920 Speaker 1: the driver's seat of how your union is run, how 203 00:12:50,000 --> 00:12:53,120 Speaker 1: strikes are called, how we negotiate, Like we want to 204 00:12:53,120 --> 00:12:57,480 Speaker 1: have a council of hospitals in contract campaigns, it's just 205 00:12:57,880 --> 00:13:02,360 Speaker 1: nurses from negotiating teams so that they can all so 206 00:13:02,440 --> 00:13:04,440 Speaker 1: we can coordinate and decide when we want to go 207 00:13:04,440 --> 00:13:06,719 Speaker 1: on strike, and it's not someone who's never been a 208 00:13:06,840 --> 00:13:21,719 Speaker 1: nurse making that call for us, Yeah, which seems just 209 00:13:21,840 --> 00:13:24,840 Speaker 1: baffling that you'd have some random person who hasn't been 210 00:13:24,840 --> 00:13:27,360 Speaker 1: a nurse making strike decisions to that, I mean, the 211 00:13:27,400 --> 00:13:29,880 Speaker 1: fact that it's not also just there seems like there's 212 00:13:29,880 --> 00:13:32,959 Speaker 1: such an enormous gap between the things you would just 213 00:13:33,200 --> 00:13:36,560 Speaker 1: basically fundamentally expect a union to be doing and what's 214 00:13:36,559 --> 00:13:39,240 Speaker 1: actually happening, which has nothing to do with that, And 215 00:13:39,280 --> 00:13:40,800 Speaker 1: it's just the sort of I mean it almost it 216 00:13:40,840 --> 00:13:44,880 Speaker 1: seems like like intentional dubobilization. Well, they want to treat 217 00:13:44,920 --> 00:13:47,920 Speaker 1: us like a spigot, like like you can turn us 218 00:13:47,960 --> 00:13:50,679 Speaker 1: on and turn us off. You know. The problem is 219 00:13:50,679 --> 00:13:52,880 Speaker 1: is that people don't respond to that well, and you 220 00:13:52,960 --> 00:13:57,360 Speaker 1: kind of constantly have to be honing your practice through 221 00:13:57,480 --> 00:13:59,920 Speaker 1: defending the contract, which is a big thing that like 222 00:14:00,040 --> 00:14:03,440 Speaker 1: a lot of my coworkers are just constantly annoyed at 223 00:14:03,559 --> 00:14:06,920 Speaker 1: that the contract we're not defending. Our chief nurse rep 224 00:14:07,040 --> 00:14:10,599 Speaker 1: is always annoyed that she can only scrape together you know, 225 00:14:11,120 --> 00:14:14,040 Speaker 1: four or five people, and you know I do it 226 00:14:14,160 --> 00:14:17,040 Speaker 1: and I'm not like I'm really good when I'm in 227 00:14:17,080 --> 00:14:19,520 Speaker 1: the room with You know, I my coworkers think that 228 00:14:19,560 --> 00:14:21,160 Speaker 1: I do a good job, but you know, when it 229 00:14:21,200 --> 00:14:24,080 Speaker 1: comes time to like doing all of the reading and 230 00:14:24,080 --> 00:14:26,160 Speaker 1: everything to make sure it's done, I need. You know, 231 00:14:26,200 --> 00:14:28,200 Speaker 1: It's the thing that I'm always working on and trying 232 00:14:28,240 --> 00:14:32,280 Speaker 1: to get better at. But you know, the that is 233 00:14:32,360 --> 00:14:34,720 Speaker 1: kind of the lifeblood of trade unionism is like, if 234 00:14:34,760 --> 00:14:36,720 Speaker 1: you're going to have a contract, you need to in 235 00:14:36,760 --> 00:14:40,320 Speaker 1: between contract barting campaigns where you can go on strike, 236 00:14:40,400 --> 00:14:45,000 Speaker 1: you need to be constantly probing and pushing and finding 237 00:14:45,000 --> 00:14:46,960 Speaker 1: where the weak spots are and keeping people in the 238 00:14:47,000 --> 00:14:50,960 Speaker 1: practice of like fighting. And if you do that and 239 00:14:51,040 --> 00:14:53,680 Speaker 1: you're really effective at it, you can affect some pretty 240 00:14:53,920 --> 00:15:02,600 Speaker 1: impressive changes in between contracts. When our friends was was 241 00:15:02,720 --> 00:15:06,880 Speaker 1: the labor rep at Cooke County, they went from having 242 00:15:06,920 --> 00:15:10,720 Speaker 1: maybe like ten people doing like the rep work to 243 00:15:11,120 --> 00:15:13,640 Speaker 1: over sixty people doing the rep work. She partnered with 244 00:15:13,680 --> 00:15:18,840 Speaker 1: a really phenomenal chief nurse Rep who had a family 245 00:15:19,120 --> 00:15:24,520 Speaker 1: Her dad had been president of a SEIU local, and 246 00:15:24,720 --> 00:15:28,720 Speaker 1: they were they had pushed so hard that they were 247 00:15:28,760 --> 00:15:36,520 Speaker 1: able to to open negotiations for attention bonuses, which after 248 00:15:36,560 --> 00:15:40,600 Speaker 1: you've settled a contract is like to open something on economics, 249 00:15:40,720 --> 00:15:44,720 Speaker 1: like on the order of fifteen, fifteen or ten thousand 250 00:15:44,760 --> 00:15:49,280 Speaker 1: dollars retention bonuses is a huge deal. Yea. The problem 251 00:15:49,360 --> 00:15:51,440 Speaker 1: was is that that then they fired her when she 252 00:15:51,560 --> 00:15:54,960 Speaker 1: connected us at Cooke County or the nurses at Cook 253 00:15:54,960 --> 00:15:59,320 Speaker 1: County with nurses at University of Chicago and we started 254 00:15:59,320 --> 00:16:01,960 Speaker 1: comparing no with what our staff were like, and their 255 00:16:02,040 --> 00:16:07,200 Speaker 1: chief nurse reps started asking the director of bargaining, who's 256 00:16:07,280 --> 00:16:09,880 Speaker 1: not a nurse and has never been a nurse, to say, 257 00:16:09,920 --> 00:16:12,480 Speaker 1: why is it that we are bringing in Why is 258 00:16:12,520 --> 00:16:15,440 Speaker 1: my facility bringing in four million dollars worth of dues? 259 00:16:15,480 --> 00:16:19,720 Speaker 1: And we get like, you know, two hundred twenty thousand 260 00:16:19,800 --> 00:16:22,800 Speaker 1: dollars worth maybe of staff, Like what's the deal? And 261 00:16:22,840 --> 00:16:24,440 Speaker 1: why is it that we don't spend any money on 262 00:16:24,560 --> 00:16:28,240 Speaker 1: arbitration or any of the stuff. They're constantly afraid of 263 00:16:28,280 --> 00:16:33,120 Speaker 1: doing anything. And that's when they fired Natalie and then 264 00:16:33,240 --> 00:16:35,400 Speaker 1: and now they're down to they're trying to whittle those 265 00:16:35,920 --> 00:16:39,600 Speaker 1: those nurses retention bonus negotiations down to like three thousand 266 00:16:39,600 --> 00:16:42,720 Speaker 1: and four thousand bucks from like fifteen thousands. You know, 267 00:16:42,800 --> 00:16:44,760 Speaker 1: you bring in the right people, and all of a sudden, 268 00:16:45,320 --> 00:16:50,640 Speaker 1: management has to like hire in like an entire legal 269 00:16:50,760 --> 00:16:56,000 Speaker 1: extra legal department at coocounting Health Services. It's not it's 270 00:16:56,040 --> 00:16:59,680 Speaker 1: not that somebody is not a nurse. That doesn't matter. 271 00:16:59,800 --> 00:17:03,640 Speaker 1: That was not a nurse, yet she was an outstanding 272 00:17:03,960 --> 00:17:08,359 Speaker 1: example what a labor rep should be. An organizer. Yeah, 273 00:17:08,400 --> 00:17:13,879 Speaker 1: I mean she you stand with the workers. I just 274 00:17:14,080 --> 00:17:19,359 Speaker 1: I do believe that we need more nurses involved in 275 00:17:18,760 --> 00:17:23,040 Speaker 1: in organizing and inside the union. But I have no 276 00:17:23,160 --> 00:17:26,720 Speaker 1: issues with you know, when you have labor reps like Natalie, 277 00:17:26,840 --> 00:17:31,879 Speaker 1: that's that's what you need to keep the union thriving. 278 00:17:32,840 --> 00:17:36,280 Speaker 1: And unfortunately, to cut her down when she was making 279 00:17:36,320 --> 00:17:42,520 Speaker 1: inroads to really empower nurses and the union was it's 280 00:17:42,560 --> 00:17:45,919 Speaker 1: just beyond the pale to make that decision. Why they 281 00:17:46,000 --> 00:17:49,320 Speaker 1: made that decision is something that I think if we 282 00:17:49,400 --> 00:17:52,439 Speaker 1: won the presidency, we'd want to find out why was 283 00:17:52,440 --> 00:17:56,959 Speaker 1: that decision made because a big part of this is 284 00:17:57,200 --> 00:18:00,919 Speaker 1: holding the staff accountable is our big thing. Like we 285 00:18:01,000 --> 00:18:04,920 Speaker 1: just need to know at right now there's no accountability 286 00:18:04,960 --> 00:18:07,600 Speaker 1: to so imagine having a job where like if you 287 00:18:07,640 --> 00:18:10,639 Speaker 1: are a nurse, Like if we're speaking to our coworkers 288 00:18:10,720 --> 00:18:13,400 Speaker 1: right now, imagine being a nurse and no one ever 289 00:18:13,480 --> 00:18:16,359 Speaker 1: checking your charting. No one ever checking what a patient 290 00:18:16,600 --> 00:18:19,479 Speaker 1: has to say about the care they got. No one 291 00:18:19,560 --> 00:18:24,320 Speaker 1: asking a doctor like what you did during a shift right, um? 292 00:18:24,400 --> 00:18:26,760 Speaker 1: No one checking you're like to see if like all 293 00:18:26,800 --> 00:18:29,280 Speaker 1: of your vital signs are actually really reflected in like 294 00:18:29,320 --> 00:18:32,280 Speaker 1: the monitor. That's the situation that we're dealing with staff 295 00:18:32,400 --> 00:18:37,800 Speaker 1: right now. No one who's outside of their staff bosses 296 00:18:37,840 --> 00:18:41,639 Speaker 1: at the director level has they're they're only accountable to 297 00:18:41,680 --> 00:18:44,639 Speaker 1: those people, and they are only accountable and they're not 298 00:18:44,640 --> 00:18:49,720 Speaker 1: actually accountable. They just write like they write everything themselves. 299 00:18:49,760 --> 00:18:52,679 Speaker 1: They write their own reports. They get they you know, 300 00:18:52,760 --> 00:18:54,639 Speaker 1: they'll take you know, a nurse will come up with 301 00:18:54,640 --> 00:18:56,960 Speaker 1: a good idea, they'll run it up the flag pole. 302 00:18:57,040 --> 00:19:04,000 Speaker 1: Check out this awesome idea have, boss. I mean, it 303 00:19:04,080 --> 00:19:06,640 Speaker 1: sounds like a downer I guess is like it all 304 00:19:06,640 --> 00:19:09,760 Speaker 1: sounds very like this is all grim and like depressing. 305 00:19:09,800 --> 00:19:11,919 Speaker 1: But the fact is is that we are at a 306 00:19:11,960 --> 00:19:13,800 Speaker 1: point now where we see what's going on and what 307 00:19:13,840 --> 00:19:16,520 Speaker 1: we need to do. We've been educating ourselves about what 308 00:19:16,800 --> 00:19:19,200 Speaker 1: can be done to change the union because the union 309 00:19:19,280 --> 00:19:22,400 Speaker 1: is a democratic structure, even in like just the shell 310 00:19:22,560 --> 00:19:25,760 Speaker 1: form of it, and as nurses We've got a lot 311 00:19:25,760 --> 00:19:27,960 Speaker 1: of faith that as nurses, we can figure this out 312 00:19:27,960 --> 00:19:32,080 Speaker 1: and come up with a much better, more democratic way 313 00:19:32,119 --> 00:19:34,800 Speaker 1: to run our union, and I think it will fundamentally 314 00:19:34,800 --> 00:19:38,000 Speaker 1: be a much stronger organization. I think that's the fear 315 00:19:38,080 --> 00:19:40,320 Speaker 1: is that somehow we like, you know, some people are like, oh, 316 00:19:40,359 --> 00:19:43,480 Speaker 1: you're you're gonna make it worse. It's like, I don't 317 00:19:43,480 --> 00:19:46,600 Speaker 1: know that you can make it worse if, like, you know, 318 00:19:46,720 --> 00:19:50,400 Speaker 1: there's the healthcare industry is changing. I think we're seeing 319 00:19:50,480 --> 00:19:52,679 Speaker 1: this in real time as a healthcare industry is changing, 320 00:19:53,160 --> 00:19:57,560 Speaker 1: and we are seeing to the you know, you have 321 00:19:58,119 --> 00:20:00,920 Speaker 1: hospitals that come up with the most cutting edged version 322 00:20:01,119 --> 00:20:06,360 Speaker 1: of healthcare, like the Universe Chicago, or the university systems 323 00:20:06,359 --> 00:20:09,159 Speaker 1: out in California, or maybe like Stanford that's like the 324 00:20:09,280 --> 00:20:12,960 Speaker 1: very like the top end of like what healthcare is, 325 00:20:13,000 --> 00:20:15,840 Speaker 1: and those hospitals are like basically they might as well 326 00:20:15,840 --> 00:20:19,600 Speaker 1: be gold mines. And then you've got the safety net hospitals. 327 00:20:19,920 --> 00:20:23,199 Speaker 1: And my fear is that the safety net hospitals they 328 00:20:23,200 --> 00:20:27,919 Speaker 1: would like to casualize to uber. They keep telling us about, oh, 329 00:20:27,960 --> 00:20:30,800 Speaker 1: they're going to uberize nursing. Well, you know, what is 330 00:20:30,800 --> 00:20:33,840 Speaker 1: it that they're doing to stop you know, over half 331 00:20:33,840 --> 00:20:36,520 Speaker 1: of the nurses being at Cook County Health Service from 332 00:20:36,560 --> 00:20:40,520 Speaker 1: being replaced with agency nurses right now, Like how long 333 00:20:40,600 --> 00:20:42,879 Speaker 1: is that going to go? Until there's like you know, 334 00:20:42,920 --> 00:20:45,200 Speaker 1: they go from a bargaining unit of you know, over 335 00:20:45,280 --> 00:20:48,280 Speaker 1: fifteen hundred nurses in the union or seventeen hundred nurses 336 00:20:48,280 --> 00:20:51,280 Speaker 1: in the union to like, you know, it could theoretically 337 00:20:51,400 --> 00:20:54,520 Speaker 1: drop down to you know, a handful of Union nurses. 338 00:20:55,920 --> 00:20:59,160 Speaker 1: And so they like they it's like an unofficial layoff, right, 339 00:20:59,240 --> 00:21:02,359 Speaker 1: people quit and they institute a hiring freeze and then 340 00:21:02,359 --> 00:21:05,200 Speaker 1: they don't replace them. They bring them in as agency 341 00:21:05,280 --> 00:21:08,640 Speaker 1: nurses because they would rather in these safety net institutions 342 00:21:09,119 --> 00:21:13,000 Speaker 1: not pay benefits, not pay pensions. You know, our hospital 343 00:21:13,040 --> 00:21:15,160 Speaker 1: we lost, they took our pension away, and the union 344 00:21:15,160 --> 00:21:18,040 Speaker 1: didn't do anything to fight that back. I was in 345 00:21:18,200 --> 00:21:21,879 Speaker 1: the pension plan for like two years and then they're like, 346 00:21:21,960 --> 00:21:25,879 Speaker 1: guess what, no more pensions and the union to do 347 00:21:25,960 --> 00:21:28,640 Speaker 1: shit about it, and they could have done something. I mean, 348 00:21:28,720 --> 00:21:31,600 Speaker 1: it was like it's because the contract language is like, well, 349 00:21:31,960 --> 00:21:35,960 Speaker 1: you get whatever we offer you. And our teamsters at 350 00:21:35,960 --> 00:21:40,920 Speaker 1: our facility took like a very like a hundred two 351 00:21:41,000 --> 00:21:44,200 Speaker 1: to four hundred dollars buyout to get rid of their pensions, 352 00:21:44,280 --> 00:21:46,280 Speaker 1: and that was the end of our pensions for the 353 00:21:46,480 --> 00:21:53,000 Speaker 1: entire medical center. And then our union where our staffers 354 00:21:53,000 --> 00:21:56,760 Speaker 1: are all bought into the steelworkers pension, right they have 355 00:21:56,800 --> 00:22:00,240 Speaker 1: a pension. They're like, well, John, maybe you'd have to 356 00:22:00,280 --> 00:22:02,600 Speaker 1: strike six or eight times, which is what they say 357 00:22:02,600 --> 00:22:04,919 Speaker 1: whenever they don't want to do anything. And they certainly 358 00:22:04,960 --> 00:22:07,680 Speaker 1: aren't telling us about hospitals, like the folks that all 359 00:22:07,680 --> 00:22:10,639 Speaker 1: debates who have struck like ten times to get what 360 00:22:10,680 --> 00:22:13,159 Speaker 1: it takes. And it's just like, you know, striking. I 361 00:22:13,160 --> 00:22:15,760 Speaker 1: think there's this idea that it's scary. I have co 362 00:22:15,880 --> 00:22:17,720 Speaker 1: workers who are telling me, John, just tell me when 363 00:22:17,720 --> 00:22:19,879 Speaker 1: the next strike is. I can't wait for the next strike. 364 00:22:20,720 --> 00:22:22,200 Speaker 1: But we've been through it. We have a lot of 365 00:22:22,240 --> 00:22:25,520 Speaker 1: coworkers who haven't. Half of our nurses are new, they've 366 00:22:25,560 --> 00:22:28,199 Speaker 1: never been through a strike. But you know, you build 367 00:22:28,320 --> 00:22:30,920 Speaker 1: a union through strikes, which is the thing that is 368 00:22:30,960 --> 00:22:33,400 Speaker 1: a little counterintuitive, especially if you do it the right 369 00:22:33,400 --> 00:22:37,280 Speaker 1: way and you're strategic about it. Raina, You've been real quiet, 370 00:22:37,720 --> 00:22:40,240 Speaker 1: like what do you think about all this? That's really 371 00:22:40,240 --> 00:22:43,920 Speaker 1: the number one I'm a lady and I don't interject 372 00:22:44,040 --> 00:22:49,880 Speaker 1: unless I absolutely have to. So to go back earlier, 373 00:22:50,240 --> 00:22:56,080 Speaker 1: what was said about how unique are Slate is well 374 00:22:56,920 --> 00:23:00,440 Speaker 1: is unique in itself. For one, of course, I kind 375 00:23:00,440 --> 00:23:05,359 Speaker 1: of sit with being a female and minority. But you 376 00:23:05,440 --> 00:23:08,600 Speaker 1: also got to think about the men. Now, there is 377 00:23:08,760 --> 00:23:12,560 Speaker 1: not a lot of men in nursing in general, and 378 00:23:12,600 --> 00:23:15,680 Speaker 1: I think that's what also they need to look at, 379 00:23:15,680 --> 00:23:20,560 Speaker 1: because I heard the criticism about that. But let's flip 380 00:23:20,600 --> 00:23:24,880 Speaker 1: the script on this. I mean we individually, as Eric 381 00:23:25,000 --> 00:23:30,160 Speaker 1: and John did say before that we were not here 382 00:23:30,200 --> 00:23:32,320 Speaker 1: to be a counsel of presidents on the every was 383 00:23:32,359 --> 00:23:35,640 Speaker 1: actually jumping on it to help other people. But from 384 00:23:35,840 --> 00:23:38,800 Speaker 1: you know, I myself and Eric, we've been knowing each 385 00:23:38,800 --> 00:23:43,400 Speaker 1: other for what seven six seven years? Yeah, something like that. 386 00:23:44,440 --> 00:23:49,080 Speaker 1: And yeah, and you know, I have seen the changes 387 00:23:49,920 --> 00:23:53,400 Speaker 1: with the union. I feel that the union has been 388 00:23:53,440 --> 00:24:00,000 Speaker 1: really stagnant. I think our dudes should be used for community. 389 00:23:59,800 --> 00:24:02,440 Speaker 1: And now during the pandemic, there is a lot of 390 00:24:02,560 --> 00:24:07,040 Speaker 1: nurses are totally burnt out and they're slowing to realize 391 00:24:07,119 --> 00:24:11,280 Speaker 1: that nursing is not what I thought. I did not 392 00:24:11,400 --> 00:24:14,320 Speaker 1: signed for for this pandemic. I never I've been a 393 00:24:14,400 --> 00:24:17,040 Speaker 1: nurse for thirteen years. I never knew that was never 394 00:24:17,160 --> 00:24:18,840 Speaker 1: thought it was going to be a pandemic like this. 395 00:24:19,200 --> 00:24:22,360 Speaker 1: So it changed your whole spectrum of what nursing stands 396 00:24:22,440 --> 00:24:25,560 Speaker 1: and also what we should do to preserve it. Now, 397 00:24:26,200 --> 00:24:29,320 Speaker 1: I you know, I look young, but I am a 398 00:24:29,440 --> 00:24:32,879 Speaker 1: grandma about to be a four and so one of 399 00:24:32,920 --> 00:24:34,520 Speaker 1: them are going to be a nurse one day. And 400 00:24:34,600 --> 00:24:37,400 Speaker 1: actually one of them is a ten year old. And 401 00:24:37,480 --> 00:24:40,040 Speaker 1: he told me, he said, you know, looking at all 402 00:24:40,119 --> 00:24:44,440 Speaker 1: my nursing books and looking at you know, all my 403 00:24:44,600 --> 00:24:46,479 Speaker 1: medical stuff, and he's looking at me, he said, you 404 00:24:46,520 --> 00:24:49,040 Speaker 1: know what, I may want to be a nurse now. 405 00:24:49,119 --> 00:24:50,960 Speaker 1: Mind you, two years ago he wanted to be a 406 00:24:51,040 --> 00:24:55,560 Speaker 1: race car driver. So it happened. So it kind of 407 00:24:55,560 --> 00:24:58,600 Speaker 1: inspired me a little bit, like I need to do 408 00:24:58,760 --> 00:25:02,760 Speaker 1: more leadership. I mean, I think I'm a natural leader 409 00:25:02,800 --> 00:25:05,840 Speaker 1: in itself. It's just how to do it, where to 410 00:25:05,880 --> 00:25:08,920 Speaker 1: go And this is just a step for me. I'm 411 00:25:08,960 --> 00:25:13,640 Speaker 1: at that age. You know, I need to look behind 412 00:25:13,720 --> 00:25:17,159 Speaker 1: you of all the younger nurses my family and what 413 00:25:17,440 --> 00:25:20,320 Speaker 1: my young grandchildren, what they may be. And I want 414 00:25:20,359 --> 00:25:24,320 Speaker 1: to preserve that. And that's a third reason why I'm 415 00:25:24,320 --> 00:25:29,080 Speaker 1: standing to do this. So and my peers. I mean, 416 00:25:29,840 --> 00:25:33,520 Speaker 1: you work, any nurse work eight to twelve hours. The 417 00:25:33,520 --> 00:25:36,080 Speaker 1: facility that you work with is almost a second home 418 00:25:36,119 --> 00:25:39,720 Speaker 1: to you. So you want to stand up with your peers. 419 00:25:40,280 --> 00:25:43,600 Speaker 1: You know, there shouldn't be no divide. We're all standing 420 00:25:43,680 --> 00:25:48,480 Speaker 1: for an employer who has been trying to take benefits away, 421 00:25:48,520 --> 00:25:53,280 Speaker 1: trying to take you know, anything that makes it decent 422 00:25:53,320 --> 00:25:56,240 Speaker 1: for you to just work and also is wearing tearing 423 00:25:56,359 --> 00:26:00,119 Speaker 1: on your wellness and your work life balance, and it's 424 00:26:00,160 --> 00:26:04,359 Speaker 1: your whole mental state. So it's so important to really 425 00:26:04,440 --> 00:26:09,480 Speaker 1: know about your union, about the breakdown of it, about 426 00:26:09,560 --> 00:26:14,600 Speaker 1: the history, about everything. You need to keep your employer 427 00:26:14,680 --> 00:26:18,560 Speaker 1: accountable and also within the union. Just like nurses have 428 00:26:18,640 --> 00:26:20,840 Speaker 1: to be accountable for everything we do, and if we 429 00:26:20,920 --> 00:26:23,240 Speaker 1: get in trouble, of course we're going to be reprimanded. 430 00:26:23,440 --> 00:26:25,400 Speaker 1: The union needs to also go through the same thing 431 00:26:25,440 --> 00:26:30,600 Speaker 1: as we do. It's only fair. So that's pretty much 432 00:26:30,640 --> 00:26:35,560 Speaker 1: it for me. Any other questions you're reading, are you 433 00:26:35,840 --> 00:26:40,960 Speaker 1: have you finished up your copy of Solidary Unionism yet? Arena? Oh? 434 00:26:41,040 --> 00:26:43,879 Speaker 1: You mean the rank and file I am on chapter 435 00:26:43,960 --> 00:26:46,639 Speaker 1: three has been on. It's been interesting and since I 436 00:26:46,720 --> 00:26:49,399 Speaker 1: will be going on vacation, well, I am on vacation 437 00:26:49,520 --> 00:26:52,479 Speaker 1: right now. I'll be leaving tomorrow. I should be finished 438 00:26:52,560 --> 00:26:57,119 Speaker 1: up with that book by then. That's one thing that like, 439 00:26:57,280 --> 00:26:59,439 Speaker 1: I don't want anyone to think just because I can 440 00:26:59,480 --> 00:27:02,680 Speaker 1: speak out the union in a half way intelligible way, 441 00:27:02,720 --> 00:27:05,320 Speaker 1: that I've been studying this for a long time. A 442 00:27:05,359 --> 00:27:08,520 Speaker 1: lot of my knowledge about the union is pretty new 443 00:27:08,560 --> 00:27:13,840 Speaker 1: and recent and uh, like I got, you know, I 444 00:27:13,920 --> 00:27:16,919 Speaker 1: picked up a copy of Stoughton Lens the Rank and 445 00:27:16,960 --> 00:27:20,320 Speaker 1: File Labor Law for the rank and Filer. There's an 446 00:27:20,320 --> 00:27:23,560 Speaker 1: audiobook of it. It's just a great, like short little 447 00:27:23,600 --> 00:27:25,600 Speaker 1: book about everything you need to know to kind of 448 00:27:26,040 --> 00:27:28,400 Speaker 1: like exercise your rights and try and stay out of 449 00:27:28,440 --> 00:27:33,639 Speaker 1: like trouble. I picked up a copy of you know, uh, 450 00:27:34,000 --> 00:27:38,040 Speaker 1: Jaye Mccaflery's no Shortcuts. We've been passing around a copy 451 00:27:38,160 --> 00:27:43,760 Speaker 1: of Stoughton Lens Solidary Unionism and like there's a lot. 452 00:27:43,800 --> 00:27:46,320 Speaker 1: And then we went to Labor Notes, and like it's 453 00:27:46,320 --> 00:27:48,919 Speaker 1: funny because our union sent us to Labor Notes. Like 454 00:27:49,200 --> 00:27:52,320 Speaker 1: I've got pictures of me and like other shift change 455 00:27:52,720 --> 00:27:57,320 Speaker 1: people that were taken by staff if we were at 456 00:27:57,400 --> 00:28:00,600 Speaker 1: the Labor Notes conference. The funny thing is that I 457 00:28:00,640 --> 00:28:03,480 Speaker 1: was in the talks about how to build a caucus 458 00:28:03,560 --> 00:28:06,439 Speaker 1: and how to exercise our democratic rights as one of 459 00:28:06,440 --> 00:28:09,359 Speaker 1: the funeral the only nurses in some of those spaces. 460 00:28:12,080 --> 00:28:15,080 Speaker 1: And you know, I don't know what they expected to happen, 461 00:28:15,160 --> 00:28:17,639 Speaker 1: but the way they're treating this whole thing, every little 462 00:28:17,680 --> 00:28:19,600 Speaker 1: thing that we've gotten, the fact that we can send 463 00:28:19,760 --> 00:28:21,399 Speaker 1: that we were about to be able to send emails 464 00:28:21,440 --> 00:28:23,600 Speaker 1: out was the thing that we had to fight for 465 00:28:24,600 --> 00:28:26,880 Speaker 1: every step of the way. They gave us a set 466 00:28:26,880 --> 00:28:30,520 Speaker 1: of rules that the rules are the most conservative interpretation 467 00:28:30,600 --> 00:28:34,080 Speaker 1: of our legal democratic rights that are set in federal law. 468 00:28:34,520 --> 00:28:37,920 Speaker 1: They gave us like the nineteen fifties, like carpenters union 469 00:28:38,400 --> 00:28:43,160 Speaker 1: interpretation of like those those rights. They ignored all the 470 00:28:43,200 --> 00:28:45,600 Speaker 1: case law that we have to be able to communicate 471 00:28:45,600 --> 00:28:49,280 Speaker 1: with our coworkers to normal union channel, like every communication 472 00:28:49,360 --> 00:28:53,240 Speaker 1: method our union uses to normally communicate with us legally 473 00:28:53,280 --> 00:28:56,640 Speaker 1: we should have access to. Now they're trying to throttle 474 00:28:56,720 --> 00:28:58,880 Speaker 1: that's like all you can only send an email communication 475 00:28:58,920 --> 00:29:01,440 Speaker 1: every fifteen days. It's like you know what, like you're 476 00:29:01,480 --> 00:29:04,600 Speaker 1: doing your little whisper campaign like twenty four hours, twenty 477 00:29:04,640 --> 00:29:07,720 Speaker 1: four seven just by and then you have to opt into, 478 00:29:08,120 --> 00:29:12,560 Speaker 1: like to communication about the about the election, like they 479 00:29:12,680 --> 00:29:16,080 Speaker 1: were trying to keep and they're cutting meetings short, they're 480 00:29:16,080 --> 00:29:19,040 Speaker 1: cutting meetings off. They were trying to bury this. Now 481 00:29:19,040 --> 00:29:21,520 Speaker 1: we think that they're they're trying to shift gears because 482 00:29:21,520 --> 00:29:24,440 Speaker 1: they know that this is a lot more serious than 483 00:29:25,480 --> 00:29:27,240 Speaker 1: they thought it was. You know, we're not here to 484 00:29:28,160 --> 00:29:30,960 Speaker 1: you know, turn the union upside like well, maybe turn 485 00:29:31,000 --> 00:29:32,600 Speaker 1: the union upside down is a good way to think 486 00:29:32,600 --> 00:29:34,600 Speaker 1: of it, but in a good productive way, not in 487 00:29:34,680 --> 00:29:37,080 Speaker 1: a you know, turn it upside down and shake it, 488 00:29:37,200 --> 00:29:39,280 Speaker 1: you know, to like you know, destroy it. We want 489 00:29:39,280 --> 00:29:41,800 Speaker 1: to turn it upside down so that it's the way 490 00:29:41,840 --> 00:29:44,280 Speaker 1: a real union is supposed to be, is it. People 491 00:29:44,320 --> 00:29:46,800 Speaker 1: who are elected into leadership are accountable to the people 492 00:29:47,360 --> 00:29:51,240 Speaker 1: who elect them and um, And our goal is to 493 00:29:52,120 --> 00:29:55,560 Speaker 1: you know, to make the union like we want to 494 00:29:55,600 --> 00:29:59,240 Speaker 1: go from something like you know, Chicago Teachers Union, which 495 00:29:59,320 --> 00:30:03,600 Speaker 1: is really power full and famously like democratic. It wasn't 496 00:30:03,600 --> 00:30:06,640 Speaker 1: always that way. It was only focused on very basic stuff, 497 00:30:07,160 --> 00:30:11,120 Speaker 1: you know, before the women in the Chicago Teachers Union 498 00:30:11,160 --> 00:30:13,880 Speaker 1: took it over and changed it for the better. M 499 00:30:14,280 --> 00:30:16,240 Speaker 1: you know, that's our goal as we want our union 500 00:30:16,280 --> 00:30:20,320 Speaker 1: to be to have that internal, vibrant discussion and debate 501 00:30:20,360 --> 00:30:23,040 Speaker 1: about how the union should be, work should work, because 502 00:30:23,080 --> 00:30:25,520 Speaker 1: we know that as nurses that we've got the skills 503 00:30:25,640 --> 00:30:28,120 Speaker 1: in the capacity to have an impact on that. Others 504 00:30:28,120 --> 00:30:31,120 Speaker 1: are said, we don't think that people who are paid 505 00:30:31,120 --> 00:30:33,440 Speaker 1: out of our due should ever be afraid when a 506 00:30:33,560 --> 00:30:36,440 Speaker 1: nurse opens their mouth and says, I think things could 507 00:30:36,440 --> 00:30:43,600 Speaker 1: be better or I don't like how this is happening. Yeah, 508 00:30:43,640 --> 00:30:45,240 Speaker 1: And I think I think one more thing I do 509 00:30:45,280 --> 00:30:49,400 Speaker 1: you kind of want to add is that you know, 510 00:30:49,440 --> 00:30:52,840 Speaker 1: you were talking a bit earlier about sort of the 511 00:30:52,960 --> 00:30:56,840 Speaker 1: risk of stagnation, and I mean, I think something that 512 00:30:56,840 --> 00:30:59,360 Speaker 1: people don't want to hear, is it, like you know, 513 00:30:59,400 --> 00:31:01,440 Speaker 1: there there. It's been a wave of militancy in the 514 00:31:01,480 --> 00:31:03,840 Speaker 1: last few years, but the actual union like the actual 515 00:31:03,960 --> 00:31:08,960 Speaker 1: unionization rate of the US keeps going down. And I 516 00:31:09,040 --> 00:31:11,480 Speaker 1: think a big part of that is, you know, like 517 00:31:11,560 --> 00:31:14,080 Speaker 1: even even in the periods when unions are really strong, 518 00:31:14,960 --> 00:31:17,360 Speaker 1: they got into these sort of bureaucratic patterns where people 519 00:31:17,360 --> 00:31:20,320 Speaker 1: were busy sort of fighting their own internal like like 520 00:31:20,320 --> 00:31:22,120 Speaker 1: busy fighting their own rank and file, and then when 521 00:31:22,120 --> 00:31:25,360 Speaker 1: the bosses came for them, they got destroyed. And I 522 00:31:25,360 --> 00:31:28,160 Speaker 1: don't know, like it really seems like a moment where 523 00:31:29,400 --> 00:31:32,480 Speaker 1: either unions are going to people like you are going 524 00:31:32,520 --> 00:31:34,720 Speaker 1: to win and you get these rank and file movements 525 00:31:34,920 --> 00:31:37,760 Speaker 1: that are changing what the union is to people it's 526 00:31:37,760 --> 00:31:41,120 Speaker 1: supposed to be, or the last remnants of unionism is 527 00:31:41,120 --> 00:31:44,160 Speaker 1: going to die. And that's I don't know, Like I mean, 528 00:31:44,240 --> 00:31:48,120 Speaker 1: it's depressing, but that's like if you if you just 529 00:31:48,160 --> 00:31:50,360 Speaker 1: look at the unionization rate chart, it just keeps going 530 00:31:50,400 --> 00:31:52,400 Speaker 1: down and down and down, and every time it seems 531 00:31:52,440 --> 00:31:54,280 Speaker 1: like it's hit to do low, it's like it finds 532 00:31:54,320 --> 00:31:56,960 Speaker 1: another way to go out, which I guess is kind 533 00:31:57,000 --> 00:32:00,840 Speaker 1: of a grim way to look at it, but I 534 00:32:00,880 --> 00:32:03,440 Speaker 1: don't know. I mean, it is very positive to think 535 00:32:03,480 --> 00:32:08,840 Speaker 1: about how how there's organizing that's difficult. It's hard to 536 00:32:08,880 --> 00:32:13,239 Speaker 1: get people to do some things right. It's difficult to 537 00:32:13,280 --> 00:32:19,719 Speaker 1: pull people together for you know, certain types of organizing 538 00:32:19,720 --> 00:32:21,440 Speaker 1: when they don't feel like they have a say or 539 00:32:21,480 --> 00:32:24,080 Speaker 1: a stake in what's going on. But I will say 540 00:32:24,120 --> 00:32:27,240 Speaker 1: that like it has been, it is always eye opening 541 00:32:27,240 --> 00:32:32,240 Speaker 1: when I watch my coworkers pull together in this thing, 542 00:32:32,320 --> 00:32:35,080 Speaker 1: and I think that there's that common experience at work 543 00:32:35,520 --> 00:32:39,160 Speaker 1: and especially care workers right now it is like, um 544 00:32:39,320 --> 00:32:42,280 Speaker 1: that is driving us to do different things. There's a 545 00:32:42,320 --> 00:32:44,400 Speaker 1: reason why we're having a rank and file movement in 546 00:32:44,400 --> 00:32:49,360 Speaker 1: our union now and things aren't just continue like continuing 547 00:32:49,400 --> 00:32:52,520 Speaker 1: to stagnate. I think that people recognize that their union 548 00:32:52,600 --> 00:32:54,480 Speaker 1: has to be fighting for them. I think that's a 549 00:32:54,520 --> 00:32:57,920 Speaker 1: big thing. People want the union to fight, not to 550 00:32:59,000 --> 00:33:02,120 Speaker 1: just kind of like sit there and you know, you know, 551 00:33:02,240 --> 00:33:04,560 Speaker 1: people get really frustrated when they feel like they're dues 552 00:33:04,600 --> 00:33:07,400 Speaker 1: are being taken and they're not seeing that immediate benefit. 553 00:33:08,520 --> 00:33:11,280 Speaker 1: The immediate benefit only comes when we pull together and 554 00:33:11,360 --> 00:33:16,080 Speaker 1: we fight back. So I think that I totally see 555 00:33:16,080 --> 00:33:17,640 Speaker 1: what you're saying. I think a lot of that comes 556 00:33:17,680 --> 00:33:20,959 Speaker 1: down to people who get into these positions. And this 557 00:33:21,000 --> 00:33:23,400 Speaker 1: is why we believe in the principle of like rotation 558 00:33:23,600 --> 00:33:29,680 Speaker 1: and like and churning over the leadership as much as possible. 559 00:33:30,000 --> 00:33:33,640 Speaker 1: Is that I think when you stay and no one 560 00:33:33,720 --> 00:33:36,680 Speaker 1: should be in the position of organize yourself out of 561 00:33:36,680 --> 00:33:40,040 Speaker 1: a job. Right if you're doing you're if you're being effective, 562 00:33:40,080 --> 00:33:43,160 Speaker 1: you're organizing yourself out of a job. And I have 563 00:33:43,360 --> 00:33:46,640 Speaker 1: organized out of myself out of some jobs, and right 564 00:33:46,640 --> 00:33:50,000 Speaker 1: now I've organized myself out of telling people that there's 565 00:33:50,000 --> 00:33:52,000 Speaker 1: a movement and that we've got to participate in it. 566 00:33:52,040 --> 00:33:54,080 Speaker 1: And now I'm moving on to other things because I 567 00:33:54,200 --> 00:33:56,400 Speaker 1: have like a whole crew of people in my hospital 568 00:33:56,840 --> 00:33:59,800 Speaker 1: who are doing that organizing work without me having to 569 00:33:59,840 --> 00:34:03,800 Speaker 1: do it. So I think that there's like it's can 570 00:34:03,840 --> 00:34:06,760 Speaker 1: be lile depressing when you look at like the raw numbers, 571 00:34:07,160 --> 00:34:08,759 Speaker 1: but I think that a lot of that is Like 572 00:34:08,840 --> 00:34:12,920 Speaker 1: it's like if you if your union is clearly not 573 00:34:13,000 --> 00:34:15,239 Speaker 1: great and people kind of complain about it, then yeah, 574 00:34:15,280 --> 00:34:17,799 Speaker 1: no one's going to want to join it. Like if 575 00:34:17,840 --> 00:34:21,400 Speaker 1: your union thinks it's more important to be a landlord 576 00:34:21,520 --> 00:34:24,279 Speaker 1: or you know, stash forty two million dollars in the bank, 577 00:34:24,320 --> 00:34:26,840 Speaker 1: then it is to invest that money in actually building 578 00:34:27,560 --> 00:34:32,719 Speaker 1: organizational expertise or you know, building organizing the unorganized, like 579 00:34:32,840 --> 00:34:35,400 Speaker 1: Eric was saying, in places that are like right to 580 00:34:35,440 --> 00:34:38,360 Speaker 1: work states, which we've won, we have won contracts in 581 00:34:38,480 --> 00:34:43,000 Speaker 1: right right to work states, but you have to be looking. 582 00:34:43,120 --> 00:34:45,480 Speaker 1: You have to be constantly pushing for it. And if 583 00:34:45,560 --> 00:34:48,239 Speaker 1: you can't just take a little win here there and 584 00:34:48,280 --> 00:34:51,160 Speaker 1: then be excited because you just got another union to 585 00:34:51,200 --> 00:34:54,160 Speaker 1: affiliate you, like our union does, Like we need to 586 00:34:54,200 --> 00:34:57,240 Speaker 1: be working on actually bringing more and more workers into 587 00:34:57,239 --> 00:35:01,480 Speaker 1: our union and if we don't do that, it will die. 588 00:35:01,960 --> 00:35:04,800 Speaker 1: But um, I think that there's a spirit in the 589 00:35:05,200 --> 00:35:08,120 Speaker 1: you know that. You know, when you come to a 590 00:35:08,160 --> 00:35:10,440 Speaker 1: place to work with co workers and you face common 591 00:35:10,560 --> 00:35:15,200 Speaker 1: enemy and common problems, common conditions, you do see what 592 00:35:15,360 --> 00:35:17,600 Speaker 1: it can look like when people decide to do something 593 00:35:17,600 --> 00:35:30,800 Speaker 1: on their own. You know. To get back to MIA's 594 00:35:30,880 --> 00:35:36,239 Speaker 1: point about declining unionism in this country. In order to 595 00:35:36,480 --> 00:35:40,399 Speaker 1: you know, to change this decline in unionism, we need 596 00:35:40,440 --> 00:35:44,279 Speaker 1: to change who we are as union members. We need 597 00:35:44,320 --> 00:35:47,640 Speaker 1: to You know that I'm not a big doctor Phil fan, 598 00:35:47,719 --> 00:35:49,799 Speaker 1: but he used to say that thing all the time. 599 00:35:50,640 --> 00:35:54,120 Speaker 1: Well how's that working for you? Unions need to take 600 00:35:54,120 --> 00:35:57,360 Speaker 1: a look at themselves and say how how how is 601 00:35:57,440 --> 00:36:02,319 Speaker 1: this working for you? We were declining? Why do we 602 00:36:02,400 --> 00:36:04,960 Speaker 1: continue to do the same thing we're doing over and 603 00:36:05,040 --> 00:36:09,960 Speaker 1: over again. We need to change who we are. For example, 604 00:36:10,000 --> 00:36:12,239 Speaker 1: as a nurse, a nurse needs to know when they 605 00:36:12,360 --> 00:36:15,560 Speaker 1: stand up and speak out that when they stand up 606 00:36:15,560 --> 00:36:18,960 Speaker 1: they won't be standing alone, that there'll be somebody around them, 607 00:36:19,000 --> 00:36:22,280 Speaker 1: that other nurses are going to be there right behind them, 608 00:36:22,320 --> 00:36:26,680 Speaker 1: backing them up. And that goes for any trade. You know, 609 00:36:26,960 --> 00:36:34,040 Speaker 1: we can't progress as workers without struggle, and there will 610 00:36:34,120 --> 00:36:37,880 Speaker 1: be struggle. We need to march forward. We need to 611 00:36:37,920 --> 00:36:43,560 Speaker 1: be able to say everybody that can be any union 612 00:36:43,640 --> 00:36:48,320 Speaker 1: should be any union, and we need to expand ourselves 613 00:36:48,400 --> 00:36:51,640 Speaker 1: as nurses. I mean, I don't want to harp on it, 614 00:36:51,680 --> 00:36:57,560 Speaker 1: but this pandemic was devastating for us. And obviously no 615 00:36:57,760 --> 00:37:03,759 Speaker 1: nurses worked remotely. I should say no bedside nurse worked remotely. 616 00:37:03,880 --> 00:37:06,400 Speaker 1: I know many of our nurse managers worked remotely and 617 00:37:06,480 --> 00:37:10,680 Speaker 1: checked in on us through you know, online things, but 618 00:37:10,719 --> 00:37:14,239 Speaker 1: for the most part, every nurse, bedside nurse was at 619 00:37:14,280 --> 00:37:20,319 Speaker 1: that bedside. It was not it was not pleasant, it 620 00:37:20,400 --> 00:37:24,759 Speaker 1: was it was something that I'm sure many nurses are 621 00:37:24,800 --> 00:37:29,120 Speaker 1: probably in uh you know, counseling for they were that 622 00:37:29,200 --> 00:37:33,800 Speaker 1: traumatized by it. They had many people had lost family members, 623 00:37:34,600 --> 00:37:36,560 Speaker 1: just like the rest of the public did, yet they 624 00:37:36,560 --> 00:37:39,960 Speaker 1: still had to continue to work. Um. I think as 625 00:37:40,040 --> 00:37:44,520 Speaker 1: a as a union, we need to change who we are. 626 00:37:46,200 --> 00:37:48,880 Speaker 1: And like I said, I don't want to point fingers 627 00:37:49,000 --> 00:37:52,480 Speaker 1: or anything that you know, people that are in the 628 00:37:52,600 --> 00:37:55,640 Speaker 1: union now or the people were running against I'm sure 629 00:37:55,680 --> 00:37:59,400 Speaker 1: they're good people, but we have a different idea, and 630 00:37:59,480 --> 00:38:03,360 Speaker 1: we want to bring a change to how the union runs. 631 00:38:03,920 --> 00:38:06,920 Speaker 1: And I think that change will make us a stronger 632 00:38:06,920 --> 00:38:10,319 Speaker 1: and better union, and I think will be will have 633 00:38:10,360 --> 00:38:14,719 Speaker 1: happier nurses and wind up with more activist nurses who 634 00:38:14,760 --> 00:38:17,959 Speaker 1: will expand the unions. It's going to be a word 635 00:38:17,960 --> 00:38:21,840 Speaker 1: of mouth. You know, one thing. You can have the 636 00:38:21,880 --> 00:38:25,560 Speaker 1: best organization in the world, but the things that are 637 00:38:25,640 --> 00:38:29,640 Speaker 1: the best product, but what really makes your product worthwhile 638 00:38:29,800 --> 00:38:33,799 Speaker 1: is word of mouth campaigns. People have to talk about you. 639 00:38:34,239 --> 00:38:38,040 Speaker 1: People have to say, hey, you know that California Nurses 640 00:38:38,120 --> 00:38:42,880 Speaker 1: Association that, and then you they're really doing something. I 641 00:38:42,960 --> 00:38:46,200 Speaker 1: want to be a part of that. Uh, you know, 642 00:38:46,400 --> 00:38:49,680 Speaker 1: we need to you know, we've been pressing on a 643 00:38:49,760 --> 00:38:54,320 Speaker 1: Medicare for all, single payer and and of course ratios 644 00:38:54,320 --> 00:38:59,480 Speaker 1: for everybody, but we need to start organizing more and 645 00:38:59,560 --> 00:39:02,480 Speaker 1: all those states where those workers suffer. Because I can 646 00:39:02,480 --> 00:39:05,520 Speaker 1: tell you this right now, you know, I'd ever talked 647 00:39:05,520 --> 00:39:09,600 Speaker 1: about it with John. Our hospital is filled with nurses 648 00:39:09,640 --> 00:39:13,919 Speaker 1: from the South and they tell you, oh, I came 649 00:39:13,960 --> 00:39:19,120 Speaker 1: to California for the ratios. They need to fight for 650 00:39:19,160 --> 00:39:22,560 Speaker 1: those ratios back in Alabama and Mississippi and all the 651 00:39:22,600 --> 00:39:26,440 Speaker 1: states they come from We need to help them, you know, 652 00:39:26,600 --> 00:39:30,799 Speaker 1: bring unions to the South. You know, the basic core 653 00:39:30,960 --> 00:39:34,680 Speaker 1: of right of right to work, it was racism. The 654 00:39:34,800 --> 00:39:38,480 Speaker 1: racism is what drove right to work. It was the 655 00:39:38,520 --> 00:39:41,239 Speaker 1: same people that brought you segregation is what brought you 656 00:39:41,360 --> 00:39:46,000 Speaker 1: right to work. And you know that's a fact. Oh 657 00:39:46,880 --> 00:39:50,279 Speaker 1: and it's important for us that you know, we want 658 00:39:50,320 --> 00:39:53,399 Speaker 1: to be an activist union and I'm not opposed to that, 659 00:39:54,800 --> 00:39:58,239 Speaker 1: but we can do that by unionizing these hospitals and 660 00:39:58,360 --> 00:40:03,600 Speaker 1: making those nurses bedside lives a lot better. Um. You 661 00:40:03,640 --> 00:40:06,960 Speaker 1: know Stoughton Lynn. It's funny is that I always laugh, 662 00:40:07,120 --> 00:40:10,760 Speaker 1: you know, John brings it up. I'm from originally from Canton, Ohio. 663 00:40:11,719 --> 00:40:14,440 Speaker 1: And of course Stoughton Lynn taught I believe it was 664 00:40:14,480 --> 00:40:18,040 Speaker 1: at Youngstown State. He was from. He was He spent 665 00:40:18,120 --> 00:40:20,680 Speaker 1: the last part of his life after his Vietnam War 666 00:40:20,760 --> 00:40:25,879 Speaker 1: activism in Youngstown, in the Youngstown area. And I think 667 00:40:25,880 --> 00:40:28,320 Speaker 1: the last book I read by him was Bob Lee's 668 00:40:28,520 --> 00:40:33,239 Speaker 1: and Zapatistas. You know, he was talking about the It's 669 00:40:33,239 --> 00:40:36,880 Speaker 1: a great book. Um. And not many people know about him. 670 00:40:36,920 --> 00:40:40,319 Speaker 1: I knew about him in Ohio because you know, you know, 671 00:40:40,560 --> 00:40:46,239 Speaker 1: social justice work there. Uh, you know at Walsh at 672 00:40:46,280 --> 00:40:50,280 Speaker 1: that time it was Walsh College and then Walsh University. Now, uh, 673 00:40:50,320 --> 00:40:54,320 Speaker 1: you know Joe Turma, the professor there, you know, was 674 00:40:54,440 --> 00:40:57,440 Speaker 1: often talk about Stoughton Lynn and that's how I, you know, 675 00:40:57,680 --> 00:41:02,279 Speaker 1: started reading a lot of his works. The things that 676 00:41:02,320 --> 00:41:06,319 Speaker 1: he says about rank and file workers is something that 677 00:41:06,360 --> 00:41:10,520 Speaker 1: we need to make part of the national conversation. And 678 00:41:10,640 --> 00:41:14,320 Speaker 1: we need to get that message out. We need to 679 00:41:14,600 --> 00:41:19,640 Speaker 1: tone down the big union actions and the big union 680 00:41:19,719 --> 00:41:25,640 Speaker 1: talk and let's just make it a nurse's conversation. We 681 00:41:25,719 --> 00:41:30,280 Speaker 1: always talked about our union about nurses values. Nurses valuables. 682 00:41:30,520 --> 00:41:36,600 Speaker 1: Values are invaluable. They apply to every walk of life, 683 00:41:36,600 --> 00:41:39,680 Speaker 1: every trade. And I think that's what we need to do. 684 00:41:39,840 --> 00:41:42,520 Speaker 1: And I know that's what Mark would say if he 685 00:41:42,600 --> 00:41:44,719 Speaker 1: was on the call with us. I just got a 686 00:41:44,760 --> 00:41:48,080 Speaker 1: text from him. He's almost finished with our video, so 687 00:41:49,040 --> 00:41:51,480 Speaker 1: he's working hard. I mean, the guy took two weeks 688 00:41:51,480 --> 00:41:55,080 Speaker 1: of his own time. And that's another thing. Here we are, 689 00:41:55,120 --> 00:41:59,200 Speaker 1: we are bedside nurses. He had to self teach himself 690 00:41:59,400 --> 00:42:06,040 Speaker 1: how to make pretty high end quality videos. And we're 691 00:42:06,080 --> 00:42:08,920 Speaker 1: not bought and sold. We don't hire anybody to do 692 00:42:08,960 --> 00:42:13,319 Speaker 1: our work for us. We're doing this ourselves. We're bootstrapping it, 693 00:42:13,480 --> 00:42:17,160 Speaker 1: as you know what they call bootstrapping it yourself up here. 694 00:42:17,200 --> 00:42:22,439 Speaker 1: We are bootstrapping a campaign and a movement. I don't 695 00:42:22,440 --> 00:42:25,479 Speaker 1: know if we're going to win. We are at least 696 00:42:25,560 --> 00:42:27,680 Speaker 1: going to make a hell of an impression on people, 697 00:42:29,080 --> 00:42:33,600 Speaker 1: and I hope whether we win or lose, that impression 698 00:42:33,840 --> 00:42:37,280 Speaker 1: goes far and that people listen to what we're saying 699 00:42:37,360 --> 00:42:42,799 Speaker 1: and demand what we're standing for. What we want our 700 00:42:42,920 --> 00:42:46,520 Speaker 1: union to be. We don't want to have an sciu 701 00:42:46,680 --> 00:42:51,040 Speaker 1: like union. We don't want to like we're paying for 702 00:42:51,160 --> 00:42:55,320 Speaker 1: services here. We want a union that listens to us 703 00:42:55,400 --> 00:43:00,319 Speaker 1: and does what we want. A nurse shouldn't have to 704 00:43:00,400 --> 00:43:06,200 Speaker 1: beg a labor rep to say no. We said no 705 00:43:06,320 --> 00:43:08,640 Speaker 1: to a last, best and final and our labor rep 706 00:43:08,719 --> 00:43:11,480 Speaker 1: said no. This in our professional opinion, this is a 707 00:43:11,520 --> 00:43:15,040 Speaker 1: good deal. Well guess guess what, Mia, We got ten 708 00:43:15,120 --> 00:43:21,200 Speaker 1: percent more by saying no. And I know that that 709 00:43:21,320 --> 00:43:26,000 Speaker 1: sounds greedy, but in reality, um, you know, we do 710 00:43:26,080 --> 00:43:30,280 Speaker 1: get paid considerably more in California than in other place 711 00:43:30,320 --> 00:43:33,200 Speaker 1: in the country. But also, to buy a house in 712 00:43:33,280 --> 00:43:36,440 Speaker 1: a bad neighborhood is a million and a half dollars correct. 713 00:43:36,480 --> 00:43:39,960 Speaker 1: So it's so it's I have to drive an hour 714 00:43:40,040 --> 00:43:43,200 Speaker 1: away just to get to work. It is cheaper where 715 00:43:43,239 --> 00:43:46,160 Speaker 1: I live right now than it is in the Bay Area. 716 00:43:46,239 --> 00:43:48,040 Speaker 1: I could not get a house in the Bay Area 717 00:43:48,080 --> 00:43:51,200 Speaker 1: at all. And we should be incorporating housing demands into 718 00:43:51,320 --> 00:43:55,160 Speaker 1: our negotiations as well, like especially years gonna be a landlord, 719 00:43:55,520 --> 00:43:58,719 Speaker 1: Like come on, well, okay, how about we you know, 720 00:43:59,200 --> 00:44:03,160 Speaker 1: the first public housing was really cooperative housing built by unions. 721 00:44:03,239 --> 00:44:06,880 Speaker 1: Like there's no reason why. Um, you know these some 722 00:44:07,000 --> 00:44:12,279 Speaker 1: of these institutions are like incredibly wealthy and building. Uh, 723 00:44:12,600 --> 00:44:15,080 Speaker 1: you know, if we can we have the kind of 724 00:44:15,080 --> 00:44:17,880 Speaker 1: power to bring them to you know, a screeching halt. 725 00:44:18,480 --> 00:44:21,360 Speaker 1: We should be able to, like, you know, get the 726 00:44:21,480 --> 00:44:25,120 Speaker 1: kind of things that we need to live by in 727 00:44:25,120 --> 00:44:27,800 Speaker 1: our community, like we should be living where our patients 728 00:44:27,840 --> 00:44:32,480 Speaker 1: are anyway. And it's you know, and it's a way 729 00:44:32,480 --> 00:44:36,359 Speaker 1: of bringing our bringing us ourselves into our community so 730 00:44:36,400 --> 00:44:38,960 Speaker 1: that our community is you know that we're part of 731 00:44:39,000 --> 00:44:44,960 Speaker 1: our community. Um. And you know, I think where I'm 732 00:44:45,000 --> 00:44:47,359 Speaker 1: just gonna say, I'm going to be waking up in 733 00:44:47,400 --> 00:44:49,759 Speaker 1: six hours so that I can go back to work. 734 00:44:50,960 --> 00:44:53,120 Speaker 1: And we want to make sure that people know a 735 00:44:53,160 --> 00:44:57,680 Speaker 1: couple of key things. So there is an election happening. 736 00:44:57,680 --> 00:45:02,120 Speaker 1: If you are a nurse in a NA California Nurses 737 00:45:02,120 --> 00:45:07,280 Speaker 1: Association or National Nurses United and NOC like hospital, there's 738 00:45:07,320 --> 00:45:10,560 Speaker 1: an election happening. Ballots are being mailed out to you 739 00:45:11,800 --> 00:45:17,320 Speaker 1: on on channel tenth. We expect that they're going to 740 00:45:17,400 --> 00:45:20,480 Speaker 1: start arriving a day or two after that. We are 741 00:45:20,520 --> 00:45:23,040 Speaker 1: the shift Change slate, so the four of us are 742 00:45:23,080 --> 00:45:27,840 Speaker 1: running for the Council of Presidents. It's Eric, Raina, John 743 00:45:28,200 --> 00:45:32,200 Speaker 1: and Mark And if you want to find us on 744 00:45:32,239 --> 00:45:35,799 Speaker 1: social media, we just got our Instagram account. We are 745 00:45:35,840 --> 00:45:39,000 Speaker 1: called Shift Change and on You. We're on TikTok Now 746 00:45:39,040 --> 00:45:42,640 Speaker 1: we're going to be releasing some videos shift Change and 747 00:45:42,800 --> 00:45:45,560 Speaker 1: on You, and then we're also going to have we've 748 00:45:45,600 --> 00:45:49,600 Speaker 1: got our YouTube and Facebook set up as well. Look 749 00:45:49,640 --> 00:45:52,160 Speaker 1: for us there. And we've got to go fund maybe 750 00:45:52,200 --> 00:45:55,560 Speaker 1: because we've got to buy the materials that we are 751 00:45:56,040 --> 00:46:00,200 Speaker 1: using to help organize with. Thankfully, by the sounds of it, 752 00:46:00,239 --> 00:46:03,120 Speaker 1: our lawyers are going to be working for us for 753 00:46:04,400 --> 00:46:07,640 Speaker 1: because they believe in what we're doing. And these are 754 00:46:07,680 --> 00:46:10,839 Speaker 1: movement lawyers. These are not right wing people who want 755 00:46:10,880 --> 00:46:14,360 Speaker 1: to fight unions. They want unions to be uh, you know, 756 00:46:14,400 --> 00:46:17,920 Speaker 1: accountable to the workers and to be strong fighting unions. 757 00:46:17,920 --> 00:46:20,359 Speaker 1: And that's our main goal is we think that our 758 00:46:20,440 --> 00:46:23,480 Speaker 1: union could be one of the most powerful unions in 759 00:46:23,480 --> 00:46:28,120 Speaker 1: the country if we organize and fight, and we organize 760 00:46:28,160 --> 00:46:32,520 Speaker 1: by building our relationships on trust and solidarity, by constantly 761 00:46:32,920 --> 00:46:35,120 Speaker 1: working to defend our contract. And we think that as 762 00:46:35,120 --> 00:46:37,640 Speaker 1: we build that energy, we can take that to all 763 00:46:37,680 --> 00:46:40,560 Speaker 1: the other things that we think are portness nurses. So 764 00:46:40,719 --> 00:46:42,840 Speaker 1: we talk about nurses values. We know those are actually 765 00:46:42,880 --> 00:46:45,680 Speaker 1: nurses values and not some person who decided that they're 766 00:46:45,680 --> 00:46:48,319 Speaker 1: going to tag along with us and ride on our 767 00:46:48,360 --> 00:46:52,920 Speaker 1: coattails to you know, whatever political future that they think 768 00:46:52,960 --> 00:46:56,279 Speaker 1: they have. You know, we are you know, this is 769 00:46:56,320 --> 00:46:58,920 Speaker 1: our union and we're going to make it you know, 770 00:46:59,040 --> 00:47:01,640 Speaker 1: accountable to us so that we can change the world 771 00:47:01,680 --> 00:47:03,920 Speaker 1: and change our workplace and make you know, being a 772 00:47:04,000 --> 00:47:06,960 Speaker 1: nurse one of those kind of jobs that people aspire 773 00:47:07,040 --> 00:47:09,120 Speaker 1: to and not something that they come into for two 774 00:47:09,200 --> 00:47:11,920 Speaker 1: or three years and then leave because it's so terrible. 775 00:47:12,920 --> 00:47:16,560 Speaker 1: So I don't know what else to say. I'm ready 776 00:47:16,560 --> 00:47:19,640 Speaker 1: for shift change, rainy. You're ready for shift change, yep. 777 00:47:19,840 --> 00:47:24,360 Speaker 1: And just like Nelson Mandela saying I never lose. I 778 00:47:24,520 --> 00:47:30,360 Speaker 1: either win or I learned. Hell yes, hell yeah. I 779 00:47:30,480 --> 00:47:33,239 Speaker 1: love this. This is the stuff I look for. Thank 780 00:47:33,239 --> 00:47:37,840 Speaker 1: you so much, Thank you, Mia, thank you, thank you 781 00:47:37,840 --> 00:47:40,160 Speaker 1: all for being on. This is great and I really 782 00:47:40,160 --> 00:47:45,160 Speaker 1: hope you'll win and if we win, bring us back. Yeah. 783 00:47:45,200 --> 00:47:47,759 Speaker 1: I was about to say, yeah, give us a report back. 784 00:47:47,800 --> 00:47:49,759 Speaker 1: We'll tell you, we'll tell you everything that happened, and 785 00:47:49,840 --> 00:47:52,799 Speaker 1: maybe if we win, we'll have a nice victory party 786 00:47:52,840 --> 00:47:56,040 Speaker 1: and maybe we'll let you come out, you and the 787 00:47:56,080 --> 00:47:58,759 Speaker 1: rest of the It could Happen Here crew, Maybe do 788 00:47:58,880 --> 00:48:01,200 Speaker 1: some live stuff for us, because I think be a 789 00:48:01,280 --> 00:48:03,640 Speaker 1: kick out of that. Every time I hear a nurse 790 00:48:03,680 --> 00:48:06,000 Speaker 1: say that I listened to it could happen here a 791 00:48:06,080 --> 00:48:08,600 Speaker 1: part of me just like does a little Snoopy happy dance. 792 00:48:13,840 --> 00:48:16,240 Speaker 1: It could Happen Here as a production of cool Zone Media. 793 00:48:16,480 --> 00:48:19,120 Speaker 1: For more podcasts from cool Zone Media, visit our website 794 00:48:19,160 --> 00:48:21,400 Speaker 1: cool zonemedia dot com, or check us out on the 795 00:48:21,440 --> 00:48:24,880 Speaker 1: iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to podcasts. 796 00:48:25,440 --> 00:48:27,600 Speaker 1: You can find sources for It could Happen Here, updated 797 00:48:27,640 --> 00:48:31,680 Speaker 1: monthly at cool zonemedia dot com. Slash Sources thanks for listening,