NURSING STAFF ASKS FOR BONUS; COUNTY OUT-PATIENT WORKERS SEEK INCENTIVE GIVEN TO OTHERS.

Byline: David Greenberg Staff Writer

The county hospital's out-patient psychiatric nurses and technicians told supervisors Tuesday they want a $1.88-an-hour ``assignment bonus'' that all other members of their bargaining unit are receiving.

Ten members of the Behavioral Health Department's out-patient staff called for an end to what they said is discrimination, asking for the bonus to be worked into base salaries in their next contract.

``To them, this is a glaring inequity within the bargaining unit,'' said Yoli Rios, labor representative for the 250-member local chapter of the California Nurses Association. ``It doesn't acknowledge their intervention skills and their assessment skills of patients. Out-patient nurses are doing a wonderful job trying to keep (patients) out of the hospital.''

The union's contract expired in September and its nurses are working under an extension as negotiations continue for a new contract.

Nurses make an average of about $23 an hour with increases for working nights and weekends, Rios said.

The bargaining unit's in-patient staff receive the $1.88-an-hour bonus, which was first incorporated into a two-year contract signed in 1995.

The bonus was created as an incentive to keep in-patient staff from seeking employment elsewhere and to acknowledge their efforts in dealing with often volatile patients.

But the nine nurses and one technician who appeared before supervisors claimed that they also work under potentially hazardous situations.

While all staff make periodic house calls, the 10-person crisis intervention team is on-call to assist police in emergency situations.

``It's been a sore spot for them in the last two contracts,'' said Rios. ``It acknowledges the specialty care provided to the outpatient mental health clients. They feel slightly. Crisis team nurses are the safety net. We are in a more serious situation now as the public has come to realize there is a nursing shortage.''

She said four nurses have quit the out-patient clinics within last year in search of higher salaries.

The labor dispute is the latest morale-testing issue that has loomed over the Behavioral Health Department staff.

In addition to the failed merger of health and social service agencies, staff feared layoffs would result from the county's agreement to repay the federal government $15.3 million for faulty Medicare billing.

``They weren't sure they were going to have jobs and continue the work,'' said Rios. ``There is a lot of uncertainty.''

The matter was resolved, at least temporarily, when supervisors last month voted to make the first of five annual $3.1-million payments using state tobacco settlement funds.