Lower Mainland Health Information Management: HSA negotiating to minimize disruption
Since January 11, 2011, health employers have been attempting to consolidate Health Information Management (HIM) Lower Mainland wide.
HSA has been making attempts to negotiate a labour adjustment agreement to minimize impacts to our health information management members caught up in this process.
To date, HSA does not have an agreed upon labour adjustment agreement with Providence for HIM Lower Mainland consolidation.
We understand that the employer has gone ahead in implementing their organizational structure for HIM.
The union is disappointed that the employer would continue to cause increasing anxiety for our members. This is totally unnecessary.
Since January 2011, HSA has made attempts to secure provision of the employers plan that include:
• The most up to date information from the employer that includes:
o Which health records administrator positions are included in HIM
Lower Mainland consolidation;
o Which HRA positions are not included in HIM Lower Mainland
consolidation;
o The current organizational chart (before HIM consolidation) at each
site identifying the site, number of HRAs, job duties, the name of
each employee and the full-time equivalent.
• Negotiating a transparent, respectful labour adjustment plan that provides options for our members.
• An updated list of members who are currently off on long term disability, maternity leave, sick leave, education leave.
• We have asked the employer to freeze vacant positions to be utilized in case of possible displacements.
• The actual number of HSA HRAs who will be affected.
• A process to deal with those HRAs not part of HIM consolidation given access to HIM vacancies for the purposes of the collective agreement.
We have made every effort to find solutions that would ease our members transition into consolidation. Now, we are taking the further step of seeking third-party recourse ... mediation or arbitration ... to mitigate these impacts for our members.
HSA is committed to keep these disruptions and impacts for our members to a minimum. We also believe that British Columbians should be able to continue to feel secure that their private medical information continues to be safeguarded by the highly-trained Health Information Management Professionals with the expertise to perform this work.
For news on Lower Mainland consolidations & related documents, please see the unions website at www.hsabc.org/consolidations