UBT Spotlight Presentation: Vascular Lab
The Vascular Lab Unit Based Team
The Vascular Lab—a department that spans five different sites in our hospital system—has been among the pioneering first wave of Unit Based Teams (“UBTs”) at UMass Memorial. Presenters from the department Denise Kush and Kim Latrobe recently described the work of this Team to members of the SHARE-UMass Memorial LMPC. Denise and Kim described what they do for patients and the challenges and successes they’ve experienced during their first couple of years as a Team.
To start, they said, their UBT looked to their Caregiver Survey results. They determined that the department could really benefit from improvements in workload distribution, education, and communication. Denise and Kim say that the consensus-building techniques they use in their UBT have made difficult challenges much more manageable. One particular project that the manager had had on her to-do list for five years got adopted by the UBT, and now the department has done it together.
Now, the Vascular Lab’s work is gaining recognition: their UBT has also been highlighted by the Betsy Lehman Center for Patient Safety, in an article that was named one of its top posts of 2019. The Vascular Lab UBT is now working to define its next projects to improve respect, safety, and engagement within the department.
Scroll on to see sample slides from their presentation and learn more about their projects.
The UMass Memorial Vascular Lab is nationally recognized in the field for providing quality care. The images they take can prompt action for life-saving care, including anti-coagulant drugs and even immediate surgery. It launched its Unit Based Team in 2017.
A Unit Based Team is typically focused in a single department. The UBT is co-led by a SHARE member and an area manager. The team is supported and sponsored by a SHARE organizer and a senior hospital leader, and given strategic tools and guidance by a UBT coach. The team will also include other SHARE members, and may also involve other employees in the area, depending on the department. The goal is to make sure that all of the relevant perspectives are represented. Together, this group coordinates with the broader department to develop projects to fix the kinds of problems that have really been getting in the way.
Denise Kush (management co-lead and the department’s chief technologist) and Kim Latrobe (SHARE co-lead and Registered Vascular Technologist)
“Unit Based Teams and Idea Boards stand alone. But they also complement each other, especially since UBTs can tackle larger issues. ”
The Venue: Labor Management Partnership Council (LMPC)
Our hospital and our union meet monthly to plan together about shared goals and concerns in a group called the Labor Management Partnership Council, or LMPC (see page 6 of the SHARE Contract Agreement for a description of this group).
The LMPC also reviews the partnership work we’re doing at the front lines, and celebrates good things that SHARE members have done. During its February meeting, the LMPC also watched the brief video profile of SHARE Member Jackie Rodriguez that appears on the AFSCME International website in honor of the “Never Quit” award that she received.
The Caregiver Survey numbers are trending in the right direction for the Vascular Lab as their UBT matures. Members there say the UBT has changed their experience at work. One recently commented that her goal used to be to get patients taken care of and get through her workweek . . . but that now she continually gets caught up thinking about how to improve and optimize the work that the department is doing.
Figuring out how to begin and measure their undertakings initially challenged the Vascular Lab UBT. But they have since developed projects that have helped to evenly distribute the work among staff and improve communication, among other things. The Technologists are continually learning to stay in the front of their field.
SHARE Encourages You to Complete the Annual Caregiver Survey
3/18/2020 Update: As our system goes through the process of creating capacity for a surge of patients by cancelling unnecessary appointments and procedures due to COVID-!9, some of you may find yourselves with a few spare minutes. We urge you to spend five minutes in the next few days taking the Caregiver Engagement Survey that Press Ganey is administering on behalf of UMass Memorial. It is short, easy, completely confidential.
When all of the present challenges are past us we will be glad to have good data compiled from many (most?) SHARE members’ experience. You can find the link in your email, along with a unique password – this password is not so the hospital can link your responses back to you, but so that Press Ganey can ensure that everyone just takes the survey once, and that their responses are assigned to the right department.
***
Bart Metzger, UMass Memorial Senior Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer
On March 11, UMass Memorial will launch the new Annual Caregiver Survey. Why should you care about this?
You may have recently seen, in the Everyday Innovators blog, the response given by guest blogger Bart Metzger. The short version of his answer?
We want you to be happy at UMass Memorial. The quality of your work life is important to us.
Your voice matters. Without your feedback, we can’t improve. And continuous improvement is part of our culture.
Caregiver experience = patient experience. If you aren’t satisfied with your work, how can we expect you to take good care of our patients?
Why Does SHARE Care About the Survey?
We’d add that SHARE wants you to take this survey. SHARE leaders will receive the results, and intends to work with hospital leadership to understand what they say about SHARE members' experiences at work. We will compare the results to those of our own recent surveys, and involve members to make sense of the data.
SHARE uses the results to line up improvements that will benefit members in their workplace. For example, recent “pulse” surveys show consistent improvement across those areas with Unit Based Teams; we’re looking to expand and deepen those kinds of efforts, and continue to help you develop a workplace you’re proud of.
Using the Results in Your Own Department
The more SHARE members fill out the survey, the more useful the results will be. This round of surveys will show how SHARE members’ experiences are trending over time. Your manager should share results, working with your team to figure out what aspects of your experience that you’d most like to improve, and how you will do it. If you have concerns in your work area about the way that this is discussed—or is not discussed—please let your SHARE organizer know.
The Survey Is Confidential
The survey process is conducted by an outside agency, Press Ganey. You will soon receive an email from them with a link to the survey. The survey is confidential, and is designed and administered in ways that ensure participants remain anonymous. In the past, SHARE has heard worries from members about survey confidentiality, but SHARE members have not reported problems with any of the surveys administered over the years by Press Ganey.
It’s Quick, and You Can Take It at Work
The survey shouldn't take much more than ten minutes, and you are encouraged to do it on work time. There’s a Spanish version this year, too.
UMass Memorial Works Because You Do
After it launches, the survey will be live through March 25. Thank you for participating, and helping to create a more complete and accurate overview about the experience of employees at UMass Memorial.
SHARE Roundup: AFSCME ID Cards, PCA Scholarships, and Recent News Items
Hi all! SHARE’s 2020 is off to a strong start. Our union is the largest in our hospital, which is the largest employer in central Massachusetts. And we’re growing. You can see in this roundup some of the reasons that that’s a good thing. We’re particularly excited that over 500 SHARE members are currently in departments with Unit Based Teams.
As a member of SHARE, you’re also a member of AFSCME, which includes over 1.4 million members across the country.
YOUR AFSCME ID
We’ve gotten a number of calls recently about bright green union membership cards that are showing up at home mailboxes. Those are legit! It appears that those of us who are dues-paying members are currently getting new cards for the 2020 year from our parent union, AFSCME.
The number on that card is valuable toward a number of education, healthcare, and consumer savings programs, many through UnionPlus. If you’ve thrown out your card, or didn’t receive one, feel free to call the SHARE office (508) 929-4020, and we’ll be happy to look up your number for you. For more details, check out this blog post.
UMASS MEMORIAL PCA SCHOLARSHIP OPPORTUNITY
Are you a PCA currently studying to advance your career in nursing? You may qualify for the UMass Memorial PCA Scholarship.
STAFFING LEVELS at UMass Memorial
. . . are discussed in this article from the Worcester Business Journal: Leading Healthcare Organizations in Central Mass Cutting Total Executive Pay. Although the headline focuses on cutbacks at the leadership level, the article also points out that UMass Memorial “reduced the number of employees by almost 8%, or nearly 1,200 workers, over a five-year period ending in 2017,” and that red tape is costing hospitals in ways that don’t benefit their patients, employees, or local communities. Most SHARE members know this is true, even without having to know the specific details, since we all feel the effect of the tight staffing levels in departments.
In spite of these trends, SHARE is seeing some growth in its ranks. Our overall numbers our getting bigger, and our union is experiencing particular increases among Medical Office Assistants and in Financial Clearance. Over the past five years, SHARE has gained roughly 250 members, so that there’s currently a total of 2793 of us at UMass Memorial.
The NUMBERS from 2019: UNIONIZATION and MIDDLE-CLASS
The Economic Policy Institute, “a nonprofit, nonpartisan think tank created in 1986 to include the needs of low- and middle-income workers in economic policy discussions,” released its top charts of 2019 to paint a portrait of recent economic trends. Their findings show that American workers generally want more ability to unionize, that roughly 40% of employers engage in illegal activities to inhibit unions, and that income inequality increases as union membership declines.
UMass Memorial Scholarship for PCAs and Nursing Students
UMass Memorial has announced the following scholarship for PCAs currently enrolled in nursing programs. You can submit your application via the online form. Or, download the application and forward the completed form to the program administrator.
SHARE New Year Roundup, Including the Newly-Published Contract
We hope your 2020 is off to a good start! This year, we’re continuing to develop improved ways to keep you connected to useful information about what’s happening in our union, our hospital, and our community, and the benefits you can claim as a SHARE union member.
GET YOUR CONTRACT!
The SHARE contract is available online to make it easy to access and search. And, it’s now in print, too! SHARE Reps and organizers will be distributing contracts throughout the campuses over the next few weeks. You’ll see us around the departments . . . but, just in case, we’re setting up contract distribution tables too. Check the Contract Distribution blog post for dates and times. We want everyone to have access to a copy, so please be in touch if we can find a better way to get them to you and your co-workers.
CONGRATULATIONS!
The work of SHARE members is getting noticed. We’re very excited that SHARE member Jackie Rodriguez recently received the AFSCME International “Never Quit” award for her efforts to get test results more efficiently. We love this video portrait of Jackie and her work. We’re excited, too, that SHARE’s Unit Based Teams featured as the subject of one of the top “Patient Safety Beat” stories of 2019.
SHARE Member Jackie Rodriguez, recipient of the AFSCME Never Quit Service Award
Fresh off the press! The new red Contract book!
EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES
New specialties and degree programs are available through the AFSCME Free College Benefit (the Associate’s program is zero cost, and a new Bachelor’s degree program is low- or no-cost for members, too!)
UMass Memorial is offering Medical Terminology classes on the University Campus
UMass Memorial and Worcester State University have partnered again to provide more sessions of the Pathway to College Program, which offers low-cost courses that serve as the foundation for many different degree programs.
MEMBERSHIP HAS ITS PRIVILEGES
If you’re a dues-paying SHARE member, you can take advantage of the AFSCME Free College Benefit mentioned above, as well as the many perks of the Union Plus program. To do so, you’ll need to know your AFSCME ID Number. This is printed on any mailings addressed to you from our parent union, AFSCME. The SHARE office has also been provided with a list, so give us a call (508-929-4020), and we can look that number up for you, too.
KEEPING CONNECTED KEEPS SHARE STRONG
We’re looking forward to lots more in-person conversations. Our connections are what make SHARE strong. Thanks to your participation, SHARE secured another strong contract last year, including consistent raises, and, among other things, commitments from the hospital to continue to support affordable health insurance premiums, the defined benefit pension program for all members, and to expand Unit Based Teams to more departments, which puts more SHARE members in important roles to partner in important decisions.
More to come. In the meanwhile, have a meaningful Martin Luther King Day weekend . .
The SHARE Contract: Get Your New Red Book
You Did It!
Although most of the policies remain the same between the contracts, you can recycle your old copy from 2016 now.
SHARE includes 2700 caregivers in over 170 job titles at UMass Memorial Hospital who take pride in their work and stay connected through their union. We demonstrated that again in our last contract negotiations. Our connections helped our negotiating team to work through some tough sticking points in our conversations about money with hospital management. Your participation was critical to securing solid raises. Remember the photo campaign?
The Contract Bargaining Agreement resulting from those negotiations is online. AND, THE NEW RED BOOK IS NOW AVAILABLE IN PRINT, TOO!
Contract Distribution
Although we encourage you to access and search the Contract from your computer or phone, we know it can sometimes be helpful to have the book itself in your hands. SHARE Reps are currently receiving copies that they can distribute in their areas.
Also, SHARE Organizers will also be stationed at the following times and locations with copies to distribute:
1/21 (2:15-3:15)—306 Belmont
1/28 (4:30pm-6pm)—Memorial Cafeteria
1/29 (11:30am-1pm)—Memorial Cafeteria
1/30 (11:30am-1pm)—University Cafeteria & ACC Lobby
1/30 (4pm-6pm)—University Cafeteria
SHARE Organizers will directly contact Biotech III, Shrewsbury Family Medicine, WBC, Hahnemann, Tri River, Century Drive, and other areas with additional times and details, and will have copies when they’re around the various UMass Memorial sites. We want everyone to get a copy who wants one, so please contact the SHARE office (508-929-4020) if you would like to make additional arrangements for you and your co-workers.
New Offerings for SHARE Members through the AFSCME Free College Benefit
Many SHARE members have already taken advantage of the Free College Benefit, offered by our parent union, AFSCME. It’s a popular perk of union membership. Since it began in 2016, the program has expanded the variety of courses and degrees that it offers. Below we’ve listed the latest.
In addition to the Free College program, which partners with Eastern Gateway University to provide opportunities for AA degrees at zero cost to union members, there’s another new option: Bachelors Degrees through Central State University that cost little to nothing.
The next semester start date is January 27, 2020. If you’ve already taken courses through the program, let your SHARE Reps know! We’d love to know about your experiences, and help other SHARE members make the most of this valuable benefit. (And congratulations, by the way: we know that going to school as a working grown-up can be an impressive challenge!)
Programs offered through Free College
Business Management Degree
Focus options include:
Advertising
Cyber Security
Data Science
Digital and Social Media
Entrepreneurship
Finance
Healthcare Management
Hospitality: Food and Beverage Management
Hospitality: Hotel and Event Management
Human Resources Management
Information Systems
Labor Studies
Marketing
Programming & Development
Associate of Arts
Criminal Justice
Teacher Education Degree (Associate of Arts)
Paralegal
Patient Home Navigator
Professional Office Management Degree
Martin Luther King Weekend 2020
A special thank you to all of the SHARE members who will be working this Monday, January 20th, on the Martin Luther King Day holiday. Hospitals are open 24/7 365 because the work that you do is so important. We know that your contributions keep our hospital healthy, and are critical for those people in our community who need it most . . . including the patients who will likely show up for x-rays on this busy ski resort weekend.
Relatedly, in case you missed it, we’re reprinting this mini-essay from last year about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and his important connection with unions, including our own . . .
Honoring Martin Luther King, Jr.
Today we celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr. We recognize his life, his bravery, his sacrifice, and his dream. We honor his thoughtful approach to the truths and paradoxes of our complex reality as he developed influential ideas about love and justice.
MLK & ORGANIZED LABOR
Dr. King was a strong supporter of unions. He famously said, “The Labor Movement was the principal force that transformed misery and despair into hope and progress.” In 1968, King traveled to Memphis, Tennessee to support striking sanitation workers who were fighting to unionize. The context, according to Stanford University’s Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute, was this:
On 1 February 1968, two Memphis garbage collectors, Echol Cole and Robert Walker, were crushed to death by a malfunctioning truck. Eleven days later, frustrated by the city’s response to the latest event in a long pattern of neglect and abuse of its black employees, 1,300 black men from the Memphis Department of Public Works went on strike. Sanitation workers, led by garbage-collector-turned-union-organizer T. O. Jones, and supported by the president of the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), Jerry Wurf, demanded recognition of their union, better safety standards, and a decent wage.
King’s public address in support of the striking sanitation workers would be his last. He was assassinated the next morning, on April 4th.
OUR FUTURE IS INTERTWINED
Bill Lucy (behind podium), with students of the HTUP and SHARE organizers
In our conversations and negotiations, SHARE often points out that the success of SHARE members is tied to the success of our hospital. We must also be aware that our future is intimately intertwined with that of our broader community.
Last year, SHARE leaders experienced a concrete and meaningful example of this interconnectedness as we gathered to see Bill Lucy at a public lecture on the 50th anniversary of the Memphis Strike. Mr. Lucy had been Jerry Wurf’s leadership partner in AFSCME as the Memphis sanitation workers’ sought to organize their union. (AFSCME is, you’ll recognize, the parent organization of our own union.)
Bill Lucy spoke about his personal experience with the Memphis strike as part of the Harvard Trade Union Program. Each year, HTUP draws union leaders in an intensive six-week educational course to learn from one another, as well as leading scholars and researchers. (The HTUP cohort that year included SHARE Organizers Bobbi-Jo Lewis and Melissa Markstrom.)
Mr. Lucy’s talk was a moving firsthand account. His presentation was punctuated by a series of questions during a Q&A session . . . as well as as a surprising statement by a woman named Jennifer Glass. The young Ms. Glass stood and claimed already to know the stories that Mr. Lucy related. She knew those stories well, she said, because she had heard them from her grandfather, one of the 1300 men who went on strike in Memphis in order to unionize their sanitation worker jobs.
Those of us in the audience couldn’t help but overhear in her comments real, heartfelt gratitude to Bill Lucy for helping to make possible opportunities in her own life. Ms. Glass had walked over to the talk from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, where she worked. On behalf of her grandfather, who had since passed on, Glass thanked Mr. Lucy for his help and involvement in her grandfather’s cause. American History got very intimate for me in that impromptu moment. I’m grateful to have been there to see Mr. Lucy and Ms. Glass speaking across the auditorium.
REALIZING THE DREAM
The Memphis Sanitation Workers ultimately succeeded in organizing. When they voted-in their union, they provided themselves an independent source of power, the right to negotiate, and all of the privileges and protections that come with being able to work collectively.
This story is not over, however. The arc of history is long. Obviously, harsh inequalities persist. Gaps in pay, education, and health create chasms between races and communities. SHARE recognizes these disparities, even in our own workplace. And we recognize our obligation to continue in the tradition that includes Dr. King, Mr. Lucy, Mr. Wurf, Mr. Cole, Mr. Walker, and countless others. We are grateful to Martin Luther King, Jr.’s model as we foster our own community, and work to take care of those around us.
“Life’s most persistent and urgent question,” Dr. King said, “is ‘what are you doing for others?’”
—Kirk Davis, SHARE Staff Organizer
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The sanitation workers’ struggle is documented in documentaries including I Am a Man and At the River I Stand, as well as the book Going Down Jericho Road.
Medical Terminology Course Offered On-site at University Campus
Want to better understand the language of healthcare? Please note this newly-announced course offering from UMass Memorial: Medical Terminology is a non-credit course designed to prepare you to pronounce, recall and apply medical terminology in the work setting and to improve your overall medical communication skills. The next session begins February 6th 2020 and runs for 10 consecutive Thursdays from 4:30-7:30 pm.
Starting Thursday, February 6th
4:30 to 7:30pm
Medical Center, University Campus
55 Lake Ave Worcester, MA 01655
Register through E-Learning 4U . If you have questions please call 508-334-4462
Pathway to College Program: Next Session Announced
The Pathway to College program is designed by our hospital in collaboration with Worcester State University to provide UMass Memorial caregivers access to low-cost courses that serve as the foundation for many degree programs, including health education, nursing, occupational studies, business, psychology, and sociology. The next session begins February 4.
Read on for more information from the program, or contact the Program Director, Jeremiah Riordan: jriordan1@worcester.edu (508-929-8787).
REGISTER NOW!
Attend classes on site
Low out-of-pocket fees
PATHWAY TO COLLEGE
Center for Business and Industry | 486 Chandler St, Worcester, MA 01602 | worcester.edu/cbi | cbi@worcester.edu | 508-929-8787
Have you always wanted to attend college to further your career, but you weren't
sure where to begin? Do you hold a high school diploma or equivalent GED?
The Pathway to College program can help jumpstart your dream of achieving this goal.
Upon successful completion of this three-course program*, UMass Memorial Health Care caregivers will be awarded nine college credits from Worcester State University, which can serve as prerequisites for enrollment in a wide range of undergraduate degree programs including business, allied health, nursing, psychology and more.
*Courses offered: English Composition I, English Composition II and General Psychology
Convenient: Classes are held on-site at One Biotech, 367 Plantation Street one night per week and run for 12 consecutive weeks.
Affordable: Minimal up-front costs, no cost for books and up to 80 percent of program costs may be covered by tuition assistance benefits. **
Supportive: Participants learn alongside peers and receive individual academic advising and guidance.
Program Information:
First class begins February 4, 2020
Tuesdays, 5:30 pm - 8:30 pm
Note: If you are interested in taking any of the courses listed above, please fill out the inquiry form today to obtain more information.
**Tuition assistance varies for each caregiver. Please visit the Tuition Assistance webpage on the Hub for more information,
(https://www.umassmemorialhub.org/my-hr/medical-center/benefits-wellness/tuition-assistance).
For any UMass related questions, please contact the Organization and People Development Team at 508-334-4462 or mydevelopment@umassmemorial.org
To learn more:
Fill out an online inquiry form: http://bit.ly/2n3Rzp5
Contact Jeremiah Riordon, Director, Center for Business and Industry
Worcester State UniversityPhone: 508-929-8787
Email: Jriordan1@worcester.edu
SHARE Member Jackie Rodriguez Receives AFSCME International "Never Quit" Award
Jackie Rodriguez is a SHARE member in Pathology at UMass Memorial. In December, Jackie was recognized by our parent union, AFSCME, with a “Never Quit Service Award” for the work she does to help patients get accurate test results as quickly as possible. Click here for a short video of Jackie talking about her life, her work, and her union.
Jackie has been taking advantage of the hospital’s Lean training. Below, you can check out the poster she made describing her Green Belt project. By developing a smart standard process for slide management and storage, she’s getting rid of unneeded frustrations for herself and her co-workers, and helping to provide efficient care to patients who need it.
Unit Based Teams in a 2019 Top “Patient Safety Beat” Report
“Labor and management work together,” the Patient Safety Beat reports. SHARE Organizer Will Erickson explains, “The purpose of our partnership and unit-based teams and our union’s involvement in this improvement work is really to change our members’ everyday experience of being at work.”
SHARE’s partnership project with UMass Memorial Hospital was one of the top stories last year in Patient Safety Beat, published online by The Betsy Lehman Center for Patient Safety. In December, the organization re-posted its “Top 5 Stories of 2019,” and included the piece about Unit Based Teams.
The article highlights that UBTs create opportunities for ongoing improvement at the front line, where employees can use their expertise to make meaningful change.
Cardiac Catheterization Technologist and SHARE member Sue Maddalena describes in the article that her UBT sought to improve communication. As in many hospital areas, their communication relied too heavily on email, in spite of the fact that the caregivers have little opportunity to access email during the workday. Now, a daily 10 minute huddle brings together the technologists, nurses, physicians, and other caregivers who will be involved in the day’s procedures.
Doug Brown, President of UMass Memorial Community Hospitals, and Chief Administrative Officer for the hospital system, says frontline staff need to help lead the necessary improvements in their departments. “They know much more than I do about how to improve their work and deliver great care to the patients,” he tells The Patient Safety Beat, “how to provide really safe care and how to avoid injuries.”
You can read the piece online here.
Antepartum Ultrasound Kaizen Event
A Kaizen Event is a coordinated session designed to make some type of improvement over a set period of time.
The work of our hospital’s obstetrics areas is obviously critical and meaningful. One member of the Antepartum Ultrasound department recently noted that a thing she particularly loves about her work is “when moms bring the babies back to us who weren’t expected to survive.”
When it comes to improving, SHARE members there see that there’s no better time than the present. Staff have long worked in Antepartum Ultrasound with concerns that have kept the department from being the best place to get and give care. A recent Kaizen Event provided a space to be heard and plan workflow improvements.
Sub-groups during the Kaizen Event brought together a mix of roles and got everyone talking. Together, they identified eight areas of opportunity and potential solutions in these categories:
SHARE members said that they thought the event was motivational: they were glad to be involved and listened to.
Staffing & lunches
Operational issues
Bottlenecks
Access
Protocols
Leadership & communication
Standards of respect
And a broader category of miscellaneous opportunities to keep track of space issues, learning, etc.
Although the proof will—as the saying goes—be in the pudding, SHARE members like Sandy Buoniconti and Trina Ratchman see this as a first step they can be optimistic about. We’re rooting for them, and looking forward to continuing to connect them with resources to help them be even better able to do work that makes a difference.
The Kaizen Event brought together High-Risk Obstetric Ultrasound Technologists with physicians and ASR’s in the Department of Maternal Fetal Medicine. Together they met with Jonna Dube, the Senior Director of Ambulatory Services newly designated to lead the area; Department Manager Lynne Stewart; SHARE Organizer Bobbi-Jo Lewis; and SHARE Process Improvement Coach Marie Manna. The Event was facilitated by SHARE organizer Will Erickson.
Introducing Four New Unit Based Teams
The Respiratory Therapy UBT brings together members from both the Memorial and University campuses
Recently, twenty-one SHARE members and management leaders representing four departments attended a training on how to launch the next wave of Unit Based Teams (UBTs). As UBTs, they will tackle the tough challenges in their departments – the “big boulders,” as UBT Coach and SHARE organizer Will Erickson puts it—that get in the way of doing work to be proud of.
The next four Unit Based Teams will be in these SHARE departments:
The new Neurodiagnostic Unit UBT leaders
Respiratory Therapy
Single Billing Office
Neurodiagnostic Lab
Nursing Operations
Another eight UBTs are expected to launch in January, bringing the total number to 25.
Know Your Department’s Severe Weather Policy
With the coming snow, SHARE Reps have begun having conversations again about the severe weather policy that SHARE negotiated with hospital management.
The full policy is posted below. The shortest summary is probably this: "All employees are expected to report to work, unless the severe weather plan in their department allows them to stay home." If you do not know if there’s a department-specific plan for your area, you should check with your supervisor or manager.
Please take good care when making decisions about traveling in extreme weather. Also, please contact the SHARE office (508-929-4020) if you have questions, or would like help developing or revising a plan in your own department.
Severe Weather
UMass Memorial is an essential community service and as such will continue its operations without regard to weather conditions. However, UMass Memorial and SHARE recognize that severe weather conditions can interfere with the ability of employees to come to work, and agree to the following:
Staffing plans
The CNO, CMO, Hospital President and Vice-Presidents are responsible for developing a fair and equitable staffing plan to ensure continued essential services, and for informing employees of staffing and attendance requirements.
In order for employees to know what their responsibilities are in the case of severe weather, departments are encouraged to develop plans for their areas within the framework of the hospital plan described above. Employees are encouraged to participate in the development of the plan for their department. Department severe weather plans could include: what staffing level is required in the case of severe weather (such as full staffing, skeletal staffing, or no staffing necessary); how employees will find out if they are required to be at work that day, who to call and how to reach them; and whether there is a difference in their department between the plan for severe weather and the plan for a declared state of emergency. Department managers should review the severe weather plan for their department with all employees annually before winter weather begins.
All employees are expected to report to work, unless the severe weather plan in their department allows them to stay home.
Staying at work
Employees who are working during severe weather conditions are expected to work through the end of their assigned work shift unless they are excused earlier. In extreme situations, employees may be required to work beyond the end of their normal scheduled work shift if the manager determines it necessary to meet patient care and operational needs. SHARE overtime rules will apply.
Department closing, early dismissal
If a department is closed for all or part of the day due to severe weather, employees may go home (see pay for missed hours) or choose to report to/remain at work. The hospital may assign people who stay at work to perform different functions than their normal job. For a work assignment in an area other than your own, page the nursing supervisor/bed management: for the University campus, pager #2044; for the Memorial campus (on evenings, nights, weekends and holidays) pager #3318.
Grace period for late arrivals
The office of the CEO or his/her designee may establish a paid grace period for arriving late to work. The length of the grace period will be based on the severity of the weather conditions.
Pay for missed hours
Other than late arrivals covered by an established grace period, employees who miss all or part of their work shift may use earned, vacation or personal time, or choose to go unpaid for the hours they missed. When appropriate, an employee may make up the time that week, by mutual consent between the employee and the supervisor. Made up hours will be paid at straight time unless weekly hours total more than 40.
Excused and unexcused absences
If an employee does not work because the department is closed, or because they are not required to come to work, it will be considered an excused absence. Late arrivals covered by an established grace period will be considered an excused absence. Other absences from work on a severe weather day will be considered unexcused.
Transportation
When severe weather makes travel unsafe, or in a state of emergency, transportation assistance may be available. Requests for assistance should be directed to the nursing supervisor/bed management: for the University campus, pager #2044; for the Memorial campus (on evenings, nights, weekends and holidays) pager #3318. When necessary, communication with external bodies such as the National Guard and ambulance carriers will be coordinated through these offices.
2020 SHARE Dues Rates Announced
AFSCME, SHARE’s parent union, has announced dues rates increases for the upcoming year. The 2020 regular weekly dues rate for SHARE members will be $9.42. That is an increase of twenty-five cents per paycheck, or a little more than ½ cent per hour. For members working 20 hours/week, the 2020 weekly rate will be $7.05. The new rates will be reflected in the January 9 paycheck.
WHY SHOULD I PAY DUES?
Dues are an investment that SHARE members make in themselves and their coworkers. Without a union, employees have very little leverage to make change, or even to hold onto what they have.
SHARE members want respect for the work that they do, fair treatment, opportunities for advancement, and good raises so that they can take care of themselves and their families. SHARE gives employees a voice in various ways:
In contract negotiations, we have a voice in our pay, benefits and work policies.
In union meetings and individual conversations, we have a voice in the direction and priorities of the union
Through the problem-solving process, we have a voice when individual problems/conflicts come up at work
In union elections, we have a voice in who our representatives will be
Through committees, Unit Based Teams, and ad-hoc negotiations, we have a voice in issues that face groups of SHARE members
When it comes down to dollars and cents, dues pay for themselves. SHARE has consistently negotiated raises each year that our union has existed, over 22 years. Those increases have resulted in notably better pay rates than non-union counterparts. Among other things, our hospital also continues to contribute to the Defined Benefit Pension plan of all SHARE members, as well as continuing to pay 85% of Health Insurance costs.
Working together through the union, SHARE members can continue to make progress in all these areas. And dues support the staff who support this work.
HOW ARE DUES CALCULATED?
Any annual increase is calculated by the AFSCME International office based on the average percent increase of AFSCME members’ pay rates across the country in the previous year.
WHERE DO MY DUES GO?
The short answer is that dues mostly pays for SHARE staff.
The longer answer is that SHARE members at UMass Memorial pool their dues money with members of three other unions locals: SHARE at UMass Medical School, HUCTW at Harvard University, and USW at Cambridge Health Alliance. The four union locals together are called the New England Organizing Project (NEOP). All their dues together pay for the union staff for all the locals, union offices, phones and utilities, mailings, etc. About 75% of the budget is for staff.
The staff spend their time gathering information and opinions from members, sharing information with members, developing and supporting SHARE Reps, helping members with questions or problems, negotiating contracts, organizing events, researching issues, writing blog posts, etc., all on behalf of SHARE members.
MORE INFORMATION
If you would like to know more, please talk to a SHARE Rep, email share.comment@theshareunion.org, or call 508-929-4020. You can also learn more about what our union does, and the benefits of union membership, by exploring www.sharehospitalunion.org.
Union Benefits and Your AFSCME ID Card
Keep track of your AFSCME Member Number to take advantage!
Some SHARE members have recently been asking about the AFSCME union ID card they received in the mail. Why did I get this? you might wonder. What is it good for?
AFSCME is SHARE’s parent union. (SHARE is also known as AFSCME Local 3900.) And, your Union membership comes with perks. Nationwide, AFSCME represents over a million members. That creates a lot of leverage in negotiating deals on things like:
And many, many other good things. Visit the Union Plus website to explore what’s available. For many of those deals and services, you’ll need to provide your union local number, and your personal union member number, which are both printed on the card.
If you don’t have a membership card and need your membership number, please contact the SHARE office (508-929-4020). We’ll be happy to help you track that down.
Our union takes a very grassroots approach. We’re focused on the issues in our hospital, on working so that SHARE members can always be moving forward financially, and on continually strengthening our community so that we can all do work that we’re proud of. But going out for a cheaper meal can be pretty nice, too.
ICYMI: Raise Time Is Time to Evaluate Your Retirement Strategy
In Case You Missed It!
And, because it’s a good annual reminder, we’re re-printing the article below, which originally appeared on the old SHARE blog. The world’s a little bit different now than it was when this originally appeared. Jay Hagan is now the SHARE Union Co-President on the Memorial Campus, for one thing. But his financial advisor’s tip is still relevant, and so are the facts and resources listed here. And at the end of this re-print, we’ve added a few extra useful tidbits.
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Original post: September 23, 2015
With the SHARE raise coming in October, this is a good time to think about starting or increasing your 401K deduction. Some folks choose this time to increase their contribution because they say they won't miss the money as much if the deduction starts at the same time as the raise.
While all SHARE members automatically accrue toward retirement through the Defined Benefit Pension, the UMass Memorial 401k plan allows you to save for retirement, pre-tax, with UMass Memorial contributing too. If you’ve been to a SHARE Retirement Training, you know that experts retirement say we should think of a solid retirement income as a three-legged stool, with the pension serving as one leg, Social Security as a second leg, and your total savings functioning as the third leg.
Though the coming raise is designed to grow your income ahead of inflation, lots of people need that raise to live on. Deciding the save money with the 401K is a tough choice for many SHARE members. The younger you start, the less you have to take out of your check each week to reach your goals.
Memorial CT Technologist and SHARE Executive Board Member Jay Hagan has served as a member of the SHARE team that has negotiated with management about the current retirement benefits. “I think a lot of SHARE members don’t realize they’re leaving money on the table if they don't save through the 401k,” he says. “My financial advisor tells me, 'if you can afford it, the employer-match is really free money.' You could think of it as the hospital paying you to participate. If you don't use the match, it's like giving the money back.”
UMass Memorial adds $.25 for each dollar you contribute to your 401k, matching up to 1% of your pay. The importance of investment savings increases in 2017, when the hospital will phase-in changes to the pension accrual rate. At that point, the UMMHC match is scheduled to increase to $.50, and up to 2% of your pay.
If you have questions about SHARE’s negotiated retirement benefits, please contact the SHARE office. If you have questions about your own 401k, contact Fidelity Investments at 800-343-0860, or log on to your Fidelity account at www.fidelity.com/atwork.
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It’s always easy to find other ways to spend your money, but be sure to show some compassion to your future self, too. That person will be grateful that the “current you” took advantage of the employer’s match, and socked away some money for yourself in your 401k. Check out these resources . . .
This article explains the value of compound interest, and why investing now gives you so much more than investing later.
Fidelity NetBenefits provides this individualized investment calculator that can help you understand just how different contribution amounts affect your long-term investments.
So many decisions! Seem like too much? Dr. Laurie Santos of Yale University tackles the subject of “decision fatigue” in episode 8 of her podcast, The Happiness Lab. (She talks about the subject of 401k’s around minute 14 of the broadcast.)
And it may seem silly to literally imagine your future self, but that can actually be useful to your financial health, according to this report.
Mass AFL-CIO Scholarship for High School Seniors
Money to go to college? Indeed.
SHARE is happy to announce that the Annual AFL-CIO Scholarship and Labor Education Program, now in its 62nd year, is currently accepting applications for the 2020 school year. Dependents of SHARE members are eligible for this award.
Through the program, the Massachusetts AFL-CIO and affiliated unions are proud to award financial resources to high school students pursuing trade union programs or college/university study. The Massachusetts AFL-CIO administers half a million dollars of scholarship awards on behalf of unions and labor councils throughout the state. Individual awards range from $500 to $16,000.
Applications to the program are due by 5pm on December 20. Applicants will be required to take a Labor History exam. Full details about the Scholarship and Labor Education program can be found on the Mass AFL-CIO Website.
Applicants please note that the “Local Number” of our union, SHARE at UMass Memorial Hospital, is AFSCME 3900.
SHARE members interested in educational opportunities should also be sure to check out the AFSCME Free College Benefit, and the Union Plus Scholarships Program.
Anticoagulation Clinic Receives Josie King Award
We are very happy to let you know that the UMass Memorial Anticoagulation Team was awarded the Josie King Hero Award. The Award is given to those who work hard to create a culture of Patient Safety by listening to the patients and their families, encouraging them to speak up and ask questions, quickly catching and correcting potential hazards, and improving team work.
On February 22, 2001, eighteen-month old Josie King died from medical errors. Over 250,000 people die every year from medical errors, making it the third leading cause of death in the United States. The Josie King Foundation’s mission is to prevent others from dying or being harmed by medical errors. By uniting healthcare providers and consumers, and funding innovative safety programs, we hope to create a culture of patient safety, together.
Congratulations Anticoagulation Team! This is a wonderful honor, and we’re very happy to see your important work recognized.
Congratulations to all of the SHARE members and their colleagues in UMass Memorial’s Anticoagulation Team!