Management at Kapi‘olani Medical Center for Women & Children on Wednesday said after receiving a second strike notice from the nurses union, it is prepared to impose a lockout.
The lockout would begin when the Hawaii Nurses’ Association’s planned one-day strike on Sept. 13 ends, according to management.
Afterward, all registered nurses represented by the Hawaii Nurses’ Association with a contract that expired Nov. 30 will not be allowed to return to work at Kapi‘olani, executives said.
Kapi‘olani values its nurses, said chief operating officer Gidget Ruscetta at a news conference, and is dedicated to providing uninterrupted, quality care to patients and the community 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
While Kapi‘olani is committed to reaching an agreement with HNA, the medical center cannot allow a labor dispute to jeopardize the ability to serve critical health care needs, she said. The lockout is expected to continue until HNA unconditionally accepts Kapi‘olani’s offer and recommends it to its members, executives said.
Ruscetta said management has had more than 30 negotiating sessions with HNA and six sessions with a federal mediator.
Management has amended its last, best and final offer twice to show commitment to reaching an agreement, including across-the-board raises.
In its offer, registered nurses by the third year earn a base salary of $133,000 to $160,000 a year for a three-day workweek, she said, along with a generous benefit package, bonuses and incentive pay.
Management is also offering a staffing matrix based on the needs of individual patients.
But HNA has never taken Kapi‘olani’s offer to its members for a ratification vote, Ruscetta added.
“Repeated strikes lead to uncertainty and disrupt our ability to provide continuous high-quality care for our patients,” she said. “In Hawaii, much of the specialized care we provide is only available at our hospital. This was a difficult decision and not what we wanted. But the union’s decision to strike for the second time in eight months directly impacts our patients.”
A temporary workforce of experienced nurses will be brought in during the lockout, she said, and Kapi‘olani will remain fully staffed to serve patients’ needs. This workforce, she clarified, is not permanently replacing HNA nurses, but is there to provide care during the labor dispute.
“HNA has the power to avoid this by accepting our fair and generous offer,” Ruscetta said. “We hope the union and the nurses choose to accept our proposal.”
HNA confirmed receipt of a letter from Kapi‘olani’s CEO David Underriner informing the union of the lockout, effective 6:59 a.m. on Sept. 14.
In response to the lockout threat, HNA President Rosalee Agas-Yuu said in a statement, “This is yet another example of the kind of threats nurses are subjected to every day at Kapi‘olani Medical Center for Women and Children. As you can see, the hospital’s culture of intimidation starts with their CEO and permeates throughout the entire hospital.”
She told the Star-Advertiser members are informed of every package presented by management, and have access to it at meetings and town halls.
“Nurses have been standing up for safe staffing, in general, through their bargaining, and now the employer’s using their clout to say, ‘Hey, take it or leave it,’” she said. “This is it.”
The two parties are still planning to meet for their scheduled bargaining session today.
