Dear New Vermont Federation of Nurses and Health Professionals Local 5221 member,
Welcome to Fletcher Allen Health Care! The Registered Nurses at FAHC voted by an overwhelming majority of 2 to 1 to create our union in October 2002. We began bargaining in December of 2002 and signed our contract July 2003. The Licensed Practical Nurses voted to join our union in 2003 and in 2006 we negotiated one contract for both bargaining units. In 2009 a group of over 300 Technical Professionals voted to join our union. Together, our mission statement is:
We, the Registered Nurses, Licensed Practical Nurses and Technical Professionals of Fletcher Allen Health Care are organizing our Union with the Vermont Federation of Nurses and Health Professionals, UP AFT Vermont, AFL-CIO to:
- Empower ourselves to advocate for our patients and our professions;
- Ensure safe staffing to meet our patients' physical, emotional and spiritual needs;
- Guarantee competitive wages and benefits for members in all clinical settings to improve retention and recruitment;
- Negotiate a legally binding contract that fosters an environment of professionalism and respect in which members have a real voice in decision making.
Our first contract was one of the best first contracts in healthcare in the country. We signed our third contract in May of 2009 and were able to negotiate many important improvements. As elected officers and stewards, we assist our colleague Registered Nurses, Advanced Practice Registered Nurses, Licensed Practical Nurses and Technical Professionals to ensure the implementation and enforcement of our contract is a priority in our workplaces.
Our strength is in our ability to give our members a strong voice on the issues that affect our patients, our workplace and our profession. In the past we were employees at will. Now we have rights and protections built into our union contract that benefit our patients and ourselves.
I know you will find the healthcare workers at Fletcher Allen to be a very dedicated, professional group of people. The healthcare workers at FAHC serve our community and are committed to high quality, safe care – it is our top priority.
I am very proud to represent such a diverse, energetic collection of truly caring staff members. We are very glad that you have chosen to join with us.
In solidarity,
Mari Cordes, RN
President
Vermont Federation of Nurses and Health Professionals Local 5221
United Professions AFT Vermont afl-cio
