CWA HOSTS INFO FORUM ON ST. BARNABAS SEVERE STAFFING ISSUES CAUSING NURSES TO REJECT CONTRACT OFFER

CWA LOCAL 1091 Represents Nurses 

(EAST HANOVER, NEW JERSEY) – Tomorrow, Tuesday, January 23^rd, the Communications Workers of America (CWA) will hold an informational meeting with nurses, unions and elected leaders regarding the severe staffing issues which caused the nurses at St Barnabas Medical Center to reject management’s latest contract offer. CWA will also give an update on the status of negotiations.

Tuesday, January 23rd

FairBridge Hotel & Conference Center

130 NJ-10

East Hanover, NJ 07936

5-6 PM 

In addition to the nurses telling their stories, attendees will include:

*Senator Ron Rice, LD-28

*Assemblywoman Mila Jasey, LD-27

*Assemblyman John McKeon, LD-27

*Freeholder Wayne Richardson

*Councilman Chris James, East Orange

*Dennis Trainor, Vice-President CWA District 1 

*Maria Refinski, President CWA Local 1091 

CWA represents 1,200 nurses at the Saint Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston. Since last September, CWA Local 1091 has been bargaining hard for its members. The nurses’ most recent contract expired last November. On December 15^th, the nurses overwhelmingly authorized a strike.

Local 1091 got negotiations as far as St. Barnabas was willing to go.  The nurses rejected the tentative agreement, due to concerns over staffing still not being addressed In a meaningful way.   Despite hundreds of complaints from nurses about staffing levels that place patients at risk and fines levied by the New Jersey Department of Health for insufficient staffing, Barnabas has remained unwilling to negotiate a real committee on safe staffing levels with CWA.