Taos, N.M.-based Holy Cross Hospital and the National Union of Hospital and Health Care Employees District 1199, a union representing healthcare workers at the hospital, reached an agreement this week on cutting hours for staff, according to The Taos News.
Here are six things to know about the agreement.
1. Under the agreement, all non-clinical employees will be required to reduce their hours by 5 percent, beginning Aug. 10. The 5 percent rule applies to every individual under Taos Health Systems.
2. Most employees will see cuts of two hours each week with the option of either accepting a smaller paycheck or using vacation time, although there will be a few exceptions, according to the report.
3. The CEO and management personnel are included in the agreement.
4. The agreement culminated after three days of negotiations which partly concerned recent cuts in hours for some hospital staff who saw their shifts shortened or canceled altogether, according to the report. These cuts were attributed to low patient volume, but resulted in some staff, such as nurses, losing more than 10 percent of their scheduled hours, the report notes.
5. The agreement spreads the cuts across departments to include employees who do not belong to the union.
6. Results of the agreement will be looked at to determine the cost savings, and will be considered when hospital administrators and the union meet again to decide whether to extend the agreement. The agreement is currently set to expire Sept. 30.
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