RFPU-NW and UW Labor Relations (UW) met for the seventh (virtual) bargaining session.
Articles discussed:
Article 5, Dues-Deduction & RFPU-NW Membership: Compromise was made by both parties that UW will provide your union with a list of all known personal emails for incoming bargaining unit members by April 15th (currently May 1st).
Article 6, Fringe Benefits: UW increased their proposal on meal reimbursement to $11/meal (from $10). UW agreed to language that all residents on inpatient primary services, inpatient consultation services, and services and clinics in which residents are expected to perform or participate in procedures shall be permitted to wear scrubs; and agreed to language stating that residents who need urgent mental health support will be prioritized for an appointment by the GME wellness service.
Article 10, Leave – Bereavement: RFPU-NW updated the bereavement leave proposal to 6 days (currently 3 days) to attend the funeral and/or make arrangements necessitated by death, including the miscarriage or stillbirth of a fetus.
Article 13, Leave – Miscellaneous: UW agreed to expand relief of overnight call and shifts 24 hours or greater, to also include overnight shifts (including home call) for pregnant residents. Additionally, UW agreed to remove the identifier of a spouse as “same or opposite sex” from the list of family members.
Article 14, Leave – Professional: UW agreed to expand language stating that Program Directors are encouraged to grant requests for residents in their home program as well as off-service Residents for professional leave.
Article 21, Professional Development & Licensing: UW increased their professional development fund proposal by $25 to $375 for reimbursement per year. They did not increase the amount of the stipend. Language was consolidated in the article by both groups to simplify the overall article.
Article 22, Salary/Stipend: UW increased their salary proposal to 2-1-1% over the length of the contract, and increased their housing stipend proposal by another $500 (totaling $3,500/year).
New Article 27, Scheduling, Hours, & Patient Care: UW partially agreed to add language regarding patient safety through the use of patient census numbers, including that programs are required to develop policies and procedures regarding back-up system(s) that are made available when clinical care needs exceed the resident ability or when a resident may be unable to attend work. RFPU-NW still maintains that safe patient census numbers need to be established and will be rotation, site, and program specific – in addition to being made publicly available.
Tentative Agreement Reached
The proposals can be read in their entirety here, along with a short video summary from this session by RFPU-NW Lead Negotiator, Dr. Kevin Steehler.
Next (virtual) bargaining session: Wed, May 4th from 3:00-7:00pm. RFPU-NW encourages all of our co-residents to attend, including incoming residents and fellows – please RSVP here.
Resident & fellow physician union - northwest/CIR/SEIU 