Madison Reporter

Even after reaching an agreement not to walk off the job, UW Health nurses are pushing forward with their demands for better compensation, scheduling, benefits and working conditions, especially after all the chaos and trauma to recently besiege the industry stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic.

WBAY reported this week that just hours before the nurses were supposed to meet at the picket line, an agreement was reached to avert the strike as further discussions were held. While talks continue between the two sides, the issue of whether or not UW Health administrators can recognize the nurses’ union has now been passed upward to the Wisconsin Employment Relations Commission (WERC).

“When my nurse colleagues and I see potentially preventable patient care problems occur day after day because of extreme understaffing, it is damaging to our psyche and our very soul,” UW Health nurse Amanda Klinge told WBAY. “This is not how our healthcare system should be run, and we refuse to accept this as the ‘new normal.’”

In the interim, nurses have agreed not to walk off the job as the WERC deliberations play out, as well as any fallout that comes about in their wake. A large majority of the nurses on staff at UW Health are union eligible.

On Aug. 25, nurses gave a 10-day warning that they were planning a 72-hour strike beginning on the morning of Sept. 13, a WMTV report said. The announcement was a heads-up that did not cut off any continued communication or bargaining with the UW Health system. The proposed strike was also described as a play for recognition by their union and an effort to better secure bargaining channels.

As part of their statements, the two sides credited Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers with bringing them to the bargaining table. Evers hosted a recent news conference from the Executive Mansion where he outlined how he invited them to the table on two occasions during which they were able to decide to let the state agency weigh in on the issue.