Peter Michael Lazes

Improving Working Conditions in Turbulent Times - Expanding the Union's Toolkit

​Creating ways to improve working conditions for members has always been a significant priority for healthcare unions. The recent pandemic worsened working conditions and has resulted in significant numbers of members  extremely angry and demoralized. The pandemic has also caused considerable numbers of union members to leave hospitals and other healthcare jobs. 
 
As we begin to emerge from the firefighting aspects of the pandemic, it seems important for healthcare union leaders to fight even more for ways for frontline staff and union leaders to have voice in decision-making about jobs and working conditions since working conditions have only gotten worse. 
 
Relying solely on traditional collective bargaining language, on grievance processes, and job actions will be helpful but will continue to leave nurses, and other healthcare professions, with the reality of having to create workarounds to simply do their jobs. Traditional approaches will still leave staff angry about the way they are treated. Issues such as short staffing and extensive moral injury of staff will still exist. Finding quicker ways to solve grievances and make sure technology is worker-friendly will continue to be significant problems. 
 
This workshop will be an opportunity to explore the use of strategic alliances, referred to as Labor-Management Partnerships, as an additional approach for union leaders to consider. This process can provide frontline staff a direct voice in decision-making in order to find sustainable solutions to working conditions problems and create more meaningful jobs. When authentically implemented, strategic alliances results in improving access and quality of care for patients, union building, and greater civic and union participation. Using this approach leaves unions all of the traditional sources of power. 
 
Maybe it’s time to consider expanding our union’s toolkit?
 
LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

• Learn how strategic alliance approaches can improve working conditions of members and what the challenges are for establishing this process
• Examine the role that union leaders need to play in order for frontline staff to have a direct voice in decision-making in their department and overall healthcare organization​

• Encourage participants to start opportunities for worker participation activities for their members 

 
Peter Lazes is co-author, with his wife (Marie Rudden) of the book- From the Ground Up- How Frontline Staff Can Save America’s Healthcare (Nov. 2020). He was the founder and director of the Healthcare Transformation Project at Cornell University's School of Industrial and Labor Relations. This program provided labor union and management leaders with customized consulting, research, and educational programs to implement strategic worker participation programs. 
 
Currently, Peter is a visiting professor and co-coordinator of the Healthcare Labor-Management Partnership Initiative at Penn State University’s School of Labor and Employment Relations. He continues to work with the unions AFT, AFSCME, CIR, SEIU, the ShareUnion, UAPD and AFL-CIO on various programs.