Union-represented nurses at Honolulu-based Hawaii Pacific Health's Kapi'olani Medical Center for Women and Children have filed an unfair labor charge against the medical center, according to a Sept. 5 Facebook post from the union.
The filing comes after the hospital said it would impose a lockout of Hawaii Nurses Association nurses after a one-day strike scheduled for Sept. 13, a move the union said it "condemns," according to the post.
"Instead of addressing the staffing needs … HPH/Kapi'olani have chosen to make the problems worse by locking out local nurses and bringing in underqualified replacement workers from the mainland," the union statement said, referencing the temporary workforce the medical center said it planned to enlist during the lockout.
In a statement shared with Becker's on Sept. 9, Gidget Ruscetta, COO at Kapi'olani, said the medical center had not received a charge from the National Labor Relations Board regarding the lockout.
"We have not committed any unfair labor practices. We are confident in our legal position," Ms. Ruscetta said. "We have tried everything to avoid this."
The HNA has accused Kapi'olani of "failing and refusing to bargain in good faith in the ongoing negotiations for a successor contract," according to a Sept. 8 report from The Maui News.
"We have bargained with the Hawaii Nurses Association in good faith for almost a year, engaged the help of a federal mediator and amended our offer on several occasions," Ms. Ruscetta said.