Unit 4

Clinical Nursing Instructors are Unit 4 of CUPE 4207. They are negotiating their first collective agreement and will be in a third conciliation on May 28th.

WE DEMAND RESPECT FOR BROCK’s CLINICAL NURSING INSTRUCTORS!

Brock University refuses to bring their pay to the provincial average. Their pay grid hasn’t changed in 12 years!

Come to support the indispensable educators in health care. Ontario needs more nurses, and nursing students need Clinical Nursing Instructors! A fair settlement will avoid a strike!

There will be FREE refreshments featuring a barbecue with vegan options as well!

What exactly do Clinical Nursing Instructors do?

CNIs liaise with hospital staff and management and liaise with faculty to deliver faculty developed curriculum and structure for each course. CNIs liaise with hospital staff and management. They meet with faculty at regular intervals and more frequently with students at risk.

They provide INSTRUCTION:
The CNIs are responsible for providing effective instruction and assessment during clinical practice to students and where there are knowledge gaps we are responsible for creating success plans in conjunction with faculty. CNIs assign pass/fail grades to students and grade journal reflections, learning plans, patient care assignment sheets and provide formative and summative midterm/final evaluations.
CNIs orientate students to hospital policies and protocols and ensure they are followed by the student.

They provide STUDENT CARE:
CNIs attend to the emotional needs of student including mental health needs and accommodate students in conjunction with SAS at the University.
CNIs debrief students after dealing with ethical dilemmas observed in clinical settings or after witnessing upsetting experiences like a death.
CNIs fill out incident reports after incidents occur during clinical hours.
We also prepare and deliver post conference sessions for students after their clinical day to debrief as a group.

They combine CLINICAL CARE AND INSTRUCTION:
The CNIs provide practical instruction to give students on-the job training and experience in hospital settings They are the primary source of communication with the student during their clinical placement. Most CNIs supervise a group of up to 8 students in the hospital setting while caring for patients. The group is assigned by the hospital to a specific unit.
CNIs help students assess patients and take vital signs, directly supervise students while performing procedures. CNIs are side by side students administering medications and ensure the safety of the student and patient at all times.

PAY OUR CLINICAL NURSING INSTRUCTORS FAIRLY!!

Brock University nursing instructors among lowest paid, says union

ByAllan Benner St Catharines Standard
Tuesday, April 23, 2024

A team of registered nurses working to pass on their knowledge to the next generation is ready to go on strike if Brock University fails to provide fair compensation for the nurses’ efforts.

Phil Wachel, president of Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 4207 aid about 50 clinical nursing instructors (CNIs) working in Brock’s nursing program voted unanimously in favour of a strike mandate after negotiations with the university reached an impasse on Feb 14.

He said a 100 per cent strike vote is almost unheard of.

“You get 95 per cent once in while, but you don’t get 100 per cent,” Wachel said. “There’s usually a dissenter among the group, but this is just so glaring that the CNIs at Brock need to come up close to the market rate, especially with the colleges getting into the RN business.” … Read more…

CUPE 4207 Solidarity Rally raises awareness about CNIs as Conciliation extends into May

By Cameron Sauder

April 12, 2024

This article is an update to the story of the CNIs in CUPE 4207 and the Conciliation meeting. To read the article written before the meeting, click here.

CUPE 4207 held a Solidarity Rally for CNIs at Brock as Conciliation went underway.

Early patrons of the Solidarity Rally on April 4 were greeted by Ron Walker, a Political Science TA and member of CUPE 4207’s first unit.

CNIs are real nurses who do real nursing and deserve a fair wage, said Walker as he held a CUPE flag and Solidarity Rally poster.

Inside the International Centre, CUPE representatives, CNIs and other supporters gathered and conversed. A self-serve breakfast bar provided coffee, tea, pastries and breakfast sandwiches, with vegan options available.

In the hour before the Conciliator arrived, the members of the Unit 4 Bargaining Committee, including Darlene Polich, Monica Hlywka, Rebecca LaRocca and Phil Wachel, were eager to explain just why this meeting was so important.

Polich described how this is a contract years in the making, with discussions about CNIs joining CUPE starting nearly three years ago, and the creation of Unit 4 occurring in 2023. Part of why this is so important is because of the drastic increase in CNIs over the last decade, with 2017 only seeing about 15 CNIs compared to this year’s 50.  … Read more…

Unit 4 Bargaining Update
Second Day of Conciliation: April 5, 2024

All in all, the two days of Conciliation were productive ones. By the end of
the second day, all of the outstanding articles have been agreed to except for the
wage settlement. This included agreement on Definitions, Job Postings &
Appointments, Leaves of Absence, Schedule & Workload, and a Letter of
Understanding on a Call-In List.

At 5:00 pm, the union presented a proposal on wages that the Employer
needs to cost out before being able to respond. For that reason, the parties have
agreed to extend Conciliation with a third date. The union proposed an extremely
reasonable offer that would recognize payment in nominal hours.
Conciliators have very busy schedules and limited availability. The third
Conciliation will likely happen at the beginning of May.

In Solidarity,
Phil Wachel, CUPE 4207 President

We have gathered, talked and planned at the solidarity rally this morning at the International Centre. Unit 4, Clinical Nursing Instructors, are having their bargaining conciliation on April 4th and 5th.

Conciliation is a legally mandated step before a bargaining unit can be in legal position to strike.

Here is the recent article written by Brock Press https://brockpress.com/cupe-4207-protests-at-brock-in-solidarity-with-clinical-nursing-instructors/.

Unit 4 Bargaining Update
First Day of Conciliation: April 4, 2024

Prior to Conciliation, a sizable Rally in Support of CNIs was held in the hallway of the International Centre. Both the Conciliator and the Employer’s Bargaining Committee took notice. A Brock Press reporter was on hand to cover the Rally.

Before noon, the parties met with the Conciliator present. The Unit 4 Bargaining Committee had provided three documents in advance of the meeting; the Employer’s Lead Negotiator had been hoping for a single document for the counterproposal. Our team obliged and worked on a new document. We presented our counterproposal just before 3:00 pm. The counterproposal contained all of the outstanding items except for our wage proposal. The employer will respond to our counterproposal on the morning of April 5.

In the meantime, the Unit 4 Bargaining Committee has our Wage Proposal ready and will be delivering it to the Employer on the 5th.

In Solidarity,
Phil Wachel, CUPE 4207 President

Brock Press article on UNIT 4 bargaining:

CUPE 4207 is planning to rally in support of Clinical Nursing Instructors at Brock, whose ongoing impasse with the University has nearly pushed them to strike. 

Spanning four units of academic workers at Brock University, CUPE (Canadian Union of Public Employees) Local 4207 has been the certified bargaining unit at Brock since 1998 when Unit 1 established their first contract. 

Read More:

CUPE 4207 protests at Brock in solidarity with Clinical Nursing Instructors  

Our local is holding a rally for Clinical Nursing Instructors on April 4th at 9 – 11 am in the International Centre (GLB).

The CNIs are our newly minted Unit 4. They came to an impasse in negotiating their very first collective agreement.

Unit 1 and 2/3 are helping prepare for a labour action should the conciliation yield no fairness in contract language regarding wages. The responsible approach for Brock would be to pay the CNIs adequately to avoid high turnover. This is benefiting neither the workers nor the students.

The Clinical Nursing Instructors are doing the job of registered nurses in patient care but with the additional responsibility of supervising and teaching a student whose practical and theoretical education they facilitate, grade and provide feedback for. The provisions in their collective agreement must reflect this hard work!