Longwoods Online
Longwoods Online
September 2007
: 0-0
FOR: Healthcare policy makers, administrators and executives - Valuable Reading to help you understand the issues faced by your employees.
Abstract
Here is a sampling of the information that members of one healthcare association shared with their negotiators during a recent labour dialogue.
The Comments:
For more information go to their website at: Health Sciences Association of Saskatchewan
"Hello! I want to send my encouragement to the bargaining team and all those who are off on strike. Thank you so much for all your hard work and dedication to making health care in Saskatchewan better. I deeply appreciate those who are off the job at present. The commitment and dedication of HSAS elected members is impressive".
"I also work in Mental Health and my workload has increased tremendously. We are expected to implement a number of significant changes without any transition time or training. We are also expected to use the new process with the same level of speed and efficiency as the old process. We are constantly told we are not working harder and our numbers don' show any increase in caseloads or complexity of cases. My job is being consumed by clerical functions. You can imagine what this does to staff morale and the quality of client care".
". . . I think both recruitment and retention are issues that need to be addressed in this contract, as we need both new people and more senior people in our workplaces. It greatly saddens me though when I read that new employees can hardly wait to leave. It tells me that our workplaces have become so empty and devoid of any possibility of fulfillment that even money can't get them to stay".
"I am employed as an assessor coordinator. We are currently finding it very difficult to recruit new staff. This is due in part to having to compete for the same professionals who are taking positions under other collective agreements, which pay better. This is resulting in shifts going unfilled and having no one available for holiday relief, putting our clients and professionals at risk".
". . . thanks for earning the designation "spunky little union"!! It sounds to me like the variance on funding available for professional development is huge. We are allowed $1000.00 per year which covers one session in Saskatoon but that's it. My biggest concern is that when we get back, there is no forum for sharing what we have learned, no interest from management and so the value of the training is lost. I had the opportunity to attend training with one of the leading experts in addictions and no opportunity to share it with my colleagues at a staff meeting, even though I asked. Why have competent, well-trained staff and not utilize their skills and abilities? I have been reviewing the Core Competencies for Canada's Substance Abuse Professionals draft report that has just come out form the Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse. Doesn't that sound like a topic of interest for an entire addictions department? Wouldn't it be interesting to bring together addictions staff in the health region together to discuss this report and make recommendations? A professional response to a document that is going to shape the profession. Or just forward to all staff with FYI as the subject? I don't think I am alone in wondering how valued my role is as a health care professional, not only by other professionals in the region, but also by the management of my department. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to vent - makes me feel valued to know someone is listening".
"I have a great job, work in a great facility and have great opportunities afforded me by management. I also have great responsibilities and an ever increasingly complex job. Here's an example of one small part of my job. Last year my colleagues and I were responsible for training 20 new recruits. We've managed to keep less than a third and have lost many of our more experienced staff. Thus our retention problem is not only with new staff but also with senior staff. For this reason I believe in both signing and retention bonuses. With fewer and fewer senior staff the mentoring of new staff falls on numerous staff members who are not on step six. By the time these employees reach step six their retention increment will be well earned. It will take many years for a 4% retention increment to equal a ten thousand dollar signing bonus however I do not begrudge any new employee their bonus…I just wish they would stick around for longer. My profession currently has no signing bonus. I greatly appreciate the work our association is doing in promoting health science professions and look forward to the financial enumeration, benefits and pension such professions should bring".
"I have been a HSAS member for a few years now and I have seen our workloads increase dramatically over the past 5 years. I am an Assessor coordinator and also a RN. At one point myself and my colleagues have had to cover two areas due to lack of staff who are on extended sick leave or people resigning. With two areas it is extremely hard to do good discharge planning and also to give the client's and their families the support they need, especially the Palliative client or the client going to LTC. We have been supervising the HHAs but now the focus has come to be the supervisor of office staff and also the Home Care nurses. Due to the big areas we cover we also incur a great deal of travel time. We also have to do all the orientation and sometimes I feel this is rushed and not always very well done. The new person is thrown in feet first and I have been told they feel like they are drowning. And before you know it they can't handle the pressure, they resign or go on extended sick time. It is also expected that we all sit on different committees and do this and give good care to all the clients in the huge areas we cover.
As to retention I have no plans to move on and it would be nice to have someone recognize the fact that I am here to stay and to have some retention bonus in place. Paying the huge recruitment money has been lost many times for they leave as soon as their contract is done. What about the loyalty of the ones who stay and pick up their workload and re-orientate the next one who is already got the huge bonus. Just some positive recognition for all the hard work!!!"
"We have to stay strong and try our best to get the message out that this is not just about money it is about the mental health of all our health care professionals in the province. Thanks for taking on this huge battle!!!!!"
For more information go to their website at: Health Sciences Association of Saskatchewan
"Hello! I want to send my encouragement to the bargaining team and all those who are off on strike. Thank you so much for all your hard work and dedication to making health care in Saskatchewan better. I deeply appreciate those who are off the job at present. The commitment and dedication of HSAS elected members is impressive".
"I also work in Mental Health and my workload has increased tremendously. We are expected to implement a number of significant changes without any transition time or training. We are also expected to use the new process with the same level of speed and efficiency as the old process. We are constantly told we are not working harder and our numbers don' show any increase in caseloads or complexity of cases. My job is being consumed by clerical functions. You can imagine what this does to staff morale and the quality of client care".
". . . I think both recruitment and retention are issues that need to be addressed in this contract, as we need both new people and more senior people in our workplaces. It greatly saddens me though when I read that new employees can hardly wait to leave. It tells me that our workplaces have become so empty and devoid of any possibility of fulfillment that even money can't get them to stay".
"I am employed as an assessor coordinator. We are currently finding it very difficult to recruit new staff. This is due in part to having to compete for the same professionals who are taking positions under other collective agreements, which pay better. This is resulting in shifts going unfilled and having no one available for holiday relief, putting our clients and professionals at risk".
". . . thanks for earning the designation "spunky little union"!! It sounds to me like the variance on funding available for professional development is huge. We are allowed $1000.00 per year which covers one session in Saskatoon but that's it. My biggest concern is that when we get back, there is no forum for sharing what we have learned, no interest from management and so the value of the training is lost. I had the opportunity to attend training with one of the leading experts in addictions and no opportunity to share it with my colleagues at a staff meeting, even though I asked. Why have competent, well-trained staff and not utilize their skills and abilities? I have been reviewing the Core Competencies for Canada's Substance Abuse Professionals draft report that has just come out form the Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse. Doesn't that sound like a topic of interest for an entire addictions department? Wouldn't it be interesting to bring together addictions staff in the health region together to discuss this report and make recommendations? A professional response to a document that is going to shape the profession. Or just forward to all staff with FYI as the subject? I don't think I am alone in wondering how valued my role is as a health care professional, not only by other professionals in the region, but also by the management of my department. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to vent - makes me feel valued to know someone is listening".
"I have a great job, work in a great facility and have great opportunities afforded me by management. I also have great responsibilities and an ever increasingly complex job. Here's an example of one small part of my job. Last year my colleagues and I were responsible for training 20 new recruits. We've managed to keep less than a third and have lost many of our more experienced staff. Thus our retention problem is not only with new staff but also with senior staff. For this reason I believe in both signing and retention bonuses. With fewer and fewer senior staff the mentoring of new staff falls on numerous staff members who are not on step six. By the time these employees reach step six their retention increment will be well earned. It will take many years for a 4% retention increment to equal a ten thousand dollar signing bonus however I do not begrudge any new employee their bonus…I just wish they would stick around for longer. My profession currently has no signing bonus. I greatly appreciate the work our association is doing in promoting health science professions and look forward to the financial enumeration, benefits and pension such professions should bring".
"I have been a HSAS member for a few years now and I have seen our workloads increase dramatically over the past 5 years. I am an Assessor coordinator and also a RN. At one point myself and my colleagues have had to cover two areas due to lack of staff who are on extended sick leave or people resigning. With two areas it is extremely hard to do good discharge planning and also to give the client's and their families the support they need, especially the Palliative client or the client going to LTC. We have been supervising the HHAs but now the focus has come to be the supervisor of office staff and also the Home Care nurses. Due to the big areas we cover we also incur a great deal of travel time. We also have to do all the orientation and sometimes I feel this is rushed and not always very well done. The new person is thrown in feet first and I have been told they feel like they are drowning. And before you know it they can't handle the pressure, they resign or go on extended sick time. It is also expected that we all sit on different committees and do this and give good care to all the clients in the huge areas we cover.
As to retention I have no plans to move on and it would be nice to have someone recognize the fact that I am here to stay and to have some retention bonus in place. Paying the huge recruitment money has been lost many times for they leave as soon as their contract is done. What about the loyalty of the ones who stay and pick up their workload and re-orientate the next one who is already got the huge bonus. Just some positive recognition for all the hard work!!!"
"We have to stay strong and try our best to get the message out that this is not just about money it is about the mental health of all our health care professionals in the province. Thanks for taking on this huge battle!!!!!"
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