With the RN orientation being longer, we are still meeting the criteria for critical pay, we have been approved by ______ ____, COO to extend the RN Critical Pay for one more month until 2/21/15.
This critical pay thing has been going on for months: extra $10/hr for anything worked beyond one's normal hours. I'm a 0.9, 90% of full time or 36 hrs/wk, so the 37th hour gets the premium. No need to get into OT. Some people work fewer hours and this can kick in at 32 hours or less.
This is the result of corporate decisions that invariably blow up on them. My immediate managers really don't give a shit over whatever incentives they may need to employ to fill out the staff (it takes 25-30 RNs to keep the dept going at any given time).
Examples of the nickle and diming they've been doing in recent years:
- eliminated most paid holidays -
- drastic cut to corporate contribution to the "pension" plan (it's not a pension, more like a pre-tax savings account in addition to the 403B).
- eliminated call pay, aka travel time (1.5 hr xtra pay if called in or shift extended).
- freezing raises (used to be they wanted us at the top of the pay scale after 7 yrs, I've been there for a while so I don't care, but it's been stretched out and younger people are pretty much stuck where they are and to put salt in the wound they let it all get out of sync so someone with less time in may make more than someone with more seniority).
- eliminated CTO sell back (okay, you're short-staffed already and then you decide to make sure that people take a full vacation? This was free money in their pockets as it wasn't paid out until November each year. I work three days a week, back to back, which means 6 on and 8 off (read that as two vacations a month) so I don't need any vacations. Just pay me. Actually, my managers don't give a shit and they pay out my CTO whenever I ask for it, even if I work 70 or more hours in a week. I don't think they're supposed to do that, but it works for me).
- a ridiculous emphasis on customer satisfaction survey results (our "customers" start boozing the minute they wake up, forsake food for crack and heroin for days at a time (I haven't eaten in three days is a mantra for these types), think we're a clinic to drag in all six of their kids for cold symptoms, or think it's a place to get socks, underwear, food and narcotics, they assault us verbally and physically and steal everything that isn't locked up and we're expected to coddle them, even security is afraid to challenge people on most issues but one day last week I did witness no fewer than 3 people get cuffed - note to people with warrants: don't act the fool and draw attention to yourself if a PD somewhere says they'll come get you).
- redefined what qualifies for off shift premium (used to be extra 7% for anything worked after 3PM, now you have to put in a minimum block of hours after 3P to qualify).
I think the last thing was the last straw that triggered a mass exodus of senior day shift staff to the university hospital in Ann Arbor for an extra $10/hr, what's described as a really good benefit package and a shot at state retirement bennies, and a set patient load and a lot less work as most tasks we're used to doing are delegated to teams. IV teams, lifting teams, every kind of team you could imagine.
A lot of people left for that. This is why we have a shitload of bodies on orientation, and it's why they have to offer a $$$ incentive to fill the holes. Orientation involves about 4 months of one on one pairing with a preceptor and a shitload of classes. This is unbelievably expensive and a major incentive to keep people on the job and avoid hiring ones who obviously only want to get some experience and pad their resumes.
The COO mentioned in the memo is the same one who got the brainstorm to eliminate the free Thanksgiving meal a few years ago. Okay, cut the fucking meal if you have to, but let us know about more than a day ahead of time (it went out in an email and was mentioned in huddle the day before: most people don't read their mail daily and a lot skip the huddle, or if they work a swing shift like me the huddle is missed every day). I can make my own lunch, I do most days, but if you're expecting a free meal and they suddenly decide to charge $8 for it and everything else is closed because it's a holiday, well, the reaction was so bad that they ended up giving meal vouchers to the whole system. That is, instead of a crappy meal that costs them pretty much next to nothing for the few hundred working that day, they had to pony up money to thousands of people, even the office types who wouldn't even consider working a holiday. Yeah, way to cut costs. That one blowed up real good. And the free meal was brought back.
I'm told there was a meeting where the same COO came down to address staff concerns. Apparently they immediately pissed her off by asking about the class action law suit in which all the local health systems were found to be fixing wages. We sent our paperwork in a year ago last January and have yet to hear peep about it. Then COO had the nerve to say that we don't work all that hard anyway. I'm told it turned into a fuck you no fuck you kind of thing. My immediate supervisors are usually cool, they know enough not to poke a hornet's nest, but the people making big decisions are clueless.
Bottom line, nobody is all that excited about the extra $10.
