Staff expectations during a strike

Dear UI Health—

The University is in contract negotiations with the Illinois Nurses Association (INA) over a collective bargaining agreement for INA Staff & Administrative Nurses. In the event of a work stoppage, we need to ensure that we have appropriate processes in place to safeguard our patients, our employees, and the Hospital & Clinics. The following expectations are in place.

CONTINUATION OF JOB DUTIES

Standard expectations concerning job duties continue. This includes but is not limited to precepting and orienting of staff, arriving to the unit on time, etc. Employees not part of the INA-represented unit on strike should be advised by their supervisor to report to work as scheduled.

TELEWORK

Employees working from home may continue to do so, unless called in by their supervisor. Those employees who remain on a telework assignment must check in and out with their supervisor via phone at the beginning and end of their workday. INA-represented employees who fail to check in and out with their supervisor will be considered on strike.

SAFETY & PARKING

During a strike, everyone deserves safety, and everyone is expected to comply with the law and policy. We want to reassure all of our staff that we will have appropriate measures in place to ensure safety. Employees should park where they normally park.

UIC Police will be present and monitoring the situation 24/7.

If you feel threatened at any time, report the action to any police officer, or call them at 5-5555. If you would like a security escort please contact 6-8888. In addition, you may report it to the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board,Hospital Administration at 312.996.3900, Human Resources at uihhr@uic.edu, or Incident Command at incidentcommand@uic.edu.

ATTENDANCE

If an INA-represented employee’s job class or title is not prevented from striking by an injunction, the INA-represented employee may choose to exercise their right to strike or to work. That decision belongs to each individual.

Employees who choose to exercise their right to strike will not be paid. Employees not part of the INA-represented unit on strike are expected to work as scheduled.

OVERTIME

Overtime may be assigned in accordance with normal practice, including mandatory overtime. Employees not part of the INA-represented unit on strike may be required to work overtime on the strike date(s), in accordance with normal practice, as directed by their unit.

SICK LEAVE

All employees must receive approval from their supervisors to charge absences against accumulated sick leave. Employees will not be approved to use sick leave except for reasons that are legitimate and valid. INA-represented employees will not be approved for any sick leave while they are engaged in a strike.

Requests by an employee to use sick leave during a labor strike may, depending on the employee’s attendance and other circumstances, constitute a situation where there exists sufficient justification to believe that the employee does not have a valid reason for requesting sick leave. In such situations, the employee may be required to produce a physician’s certification or other evidence acceptable to the University to substantiate the reason for the sick leave request and that the employee is not illegitimately attempting to use sick leave while also participating in a strike.

• If an employee fails to provide sufficient evidence to substantiate the reason for the sick leave request, their absences from work will be deemed unexcused and unpaid, and normal disciplinary rules will apply.
• If the employee does, in such situations, provide sufficient evidence to substantiate the reason for the sick leave request, the employee’s accrued sick leave balance may be used to the extent it is approved by the employee’s department, consistent with normal requirements governing use of sick leave.

VACATION

For all employees, the only vacation absences that will be permitted will be those that were both previously approved and not canceled. No additional vacation with be approved during the time of the strike.

OTHER CALL-OFFS

Call-offs for any reason other than those listed above will be considered unexcused and unpaid, and normal processes will apply.

THANK YOU

We know this is a difficult time, and we are all grateful for the tremendous efforts so many are making to ensure that we continue to provide safe, high-quality care. Additional concerns are addressed in the attached Work Stoppage FAQ, which also is available on the UI Health–INA Negotiation intranet tile.

Sincerely,

Hospital & Clinics Leadership