HONOLULU (AP) -- The plea ``Nurse!'' still brings someone running in Hawaii hospitals. But not David Haga or 1,400 other nurses -- more than 10 percent of the state's nursing staff -- who are spending the holiday season on strike.þþ``I'm willing to sell my home, my car, whatever I have to do to maintain the strike,'' said Haga, 43, who has worked in the intensive care unit at Kuakini Medical Center for 12 years.þþThe three-week-old walkouts at Kuakini, Queen's and St. Francis medical centers in Honolulu make up one of the biggest health care walkouts in the country this year.þþAs in disputes at hospitals elsewhere, the Hawaii nurses are demanding contracts that restrict mandatory overtime and protect their benefits, issues they say will ultimately allow them to better serve the sick. They say that under the current conditions, they routinely work 12- to 16-hour days and their hospitals are critically understaffed.þþ``If we can't get it resolved, I don't want to go back to a hostile work environment where my patients are in jeopardy,'' Haga said.þþHospital administrators have agreed to some wage increases, but insist staffing rule changes are needed to save money.þþGov. Linda Lingle said Friday that she does not feel public health and safety are threatened and she does not want to step into the labor dispute. However, Lingle offered to meet with a small group of nurses after about 400 of them marched into the Capitol chanting ``nurses, nurses, nurses.''þþA few union registered nurses have crossed picket lines, but strikers say morale and unity remain high. At Friday's rally, nurses wore elf and Santa hats and a four-piece brass band played Christmas songs under the banyan trees.þþMany said they looked forward to enjoying their first Christmas off in many years, even if there weren't any presents.þþ``Our cause is noble and we need to continue to stick together,'' said Leslie Garamella, who has been a nurse for 26 years, the last 14 at Queen's. ``You may not have many gifts to give, but you have each other, you have your integrity.''þþAll three hospitals have hired replacement nurses from the mainland and shifted administrative RNs to patient care. Strikers also pitched in for at least one emergency. On Dec. 17, three nurses left the picket line at St. Francis to assist in a kidney transplant operation because specialized replacement nurses weren't available.þþSo far this year, there have been 18 nurses' strikes nationwide involving 5,600 nurses, from as few as five at an Iowa clinic to about 1,500 at Oregon Health and Science University in Portland, said Suzanne Martin, a spokeswoman for United American Nurses, the labor arm of the American Nurses Association.þþIn Hawaii, the sticking points in negotiations mostly involve benefits.þþOfficials of the Hawaii Nurses Association said they turned down a contract proposal from Queen's last week because it did not adequately address retirement benefits or the reassignment of some nursing duties, a move they fear could lead to staffing cutbacks.þþQueen's nurses also are fighting ``paid time off,'' a policy of pooling vacations, sick leave and holiday time. Nurses say that would require them to use up vacation time if they catch illnesses from their patients. Hospitals say it would reward nurses for good attendance and minimize abuse of sick leave.þþNurses at the three hospitals earn about $20 to $38 an hour. Officials at Queen's have said their proposal offered a 21 percent salary increase over three years.þþ``This is not about wages. It has never been about wages,'' Queen's nurse Bill Richter said. ``It has always been about the nurses ability to care for patients and do so safely.''þþNo talks have been held at St. Francis since nurses went on strike. Union officials said the one-year contract offered there was lacking in every area, including a 4 percent pay raise. The latest offer at Kuakini failed to include sufficient retirement benefits and restrictions against mandatory overtime, union officials said. Talks with the other two hospitals broke off last week.þþþ
Source: NY Times
