Digest

SHARE Digest: All Kinds of Help . . . AND, Union Plus College Scholarships

Making the Most of Your Union Experience: Finding the help you need

In a healthcare union of 3500 people, members and their friends can face almost every kind of challenge. But we don’t all face the same challenges at the same time, and we’re here to support each other. SHARE Reps and Staff Organizers consult with members daily about many different questions and concerns. You should always feel welcome to call or email the SHARE office for help. But do you know about all of the resources organized on the SHARE website? Here are some of the most useful and commonly used:

  • The SHARE Contract is the complete document of our union’s agreement with UMass Memorial about policies, wages, partnership, and more.

  • Problem Solving & Disciplinary Meeting Support describes how SHARE Organizers and Reps can support you in meetings with management in your work area

  • CommunityHELP, developed in partnership with UMass Memorial, provides a searchable database of services centered in Central Massachusetts. Search for free or reduced cost services related to food, job training, transportation and more.

  • Union Plus provides a variety of services and perks to union members, including legal help, mortgage assistance, medical bill negotiating assistance, educational programs, and more.

That’s just scratching the surface. Check out the Getting Help section of the website or the lists of Frequently Asked Questions for more resources.

How to Sign Up for Union Plus

To take advantage of most Union Plus Benefits, you’ll need to register with Union Plus. Note that “SHARE” is not listed as a registration option . . . our union is also identified as AFSCME Local 3900.

To sign up, you’ll need to select our parent union, “AFSCME, American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees,” in the dropdown menu.

Union Plus College Scholarships: Application Deadline Soon!

If you are a SHARE member, then you’re also eligible to take advantage of the nation-wide Union Plus program, which offers a broad range of perks and benefits to union members, including the Union Plus College Scholarships, which have a rapidly-approaching deadline of January 31, 2025.

Current and retired members of participating unions, their spouses and their dependent children are eligible for these competitive scholarships. Amounts range from $500 to $4,000. These one-time cash awards are for study beginning in the Fall of 2025. Students may re-apply each year.

Since 1991, the Union Plus Scholarship Program has awarded more than $5.6 million to students of working families who want to begin or continue their post-secondary education. More than 4,000 families have benefited from Union Plus’s commitment to higher education.

SHARE Updates: MLK, The Pavilion, Earn-and-Learn Opportunities, and More

SHARE Honors Dr. Martin Luther King

On the Martin Luther King Day holiday, as every day, SHARE values the work and life of Dr. King, and the model that he provided us for addressing social inequities in healthcare and labor.

SHARE Members Make UMass Memorial Pavilion Opening a Success

UMass Memorial’s new North Pavilion provides new (and much-needed) inpatient beds. Opening an entire new building like this one is no small task, especially as patients are transitioned into their new rooms, and caregivers familiarize themselves with the new workspace and work-flows.

Thank you to those seasoned and new SHARE members who are bringing their expertise to helping make the transition a success. We’re all rooting for you as you work through all the kinks and challenges to get everything running smoothly. SHARE is here to support you, so please don’t hesitate to reach out. If questions or concerns arise, please contact your SHARE organizer, or contact the SHARE office directly by phone (508-929-4020) or email (share.comment@theshareunion.org)

PCA Pathway Program

Does someone you know want to begin a career at UMass Memorial working on the nursing floors and in clinics? The Patient Care Associate Program is now open to friends and family of SHARE members! Learn more about the PCA Pathway program here.

SHARE Updates: Happy Holidays! and more . . .

SHARE UBTs in the Spotlight

SHARE in the Spotlight: The Institute for Healthcare Improvement Conference

SHARE members have had another busy year in 2024, including in SHARE’s Unit Based Teams. SHARE Organizer Janet Wilder and Continuous Improvement Coach Will Erickson recently spread the good word about our union at the conference of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI). The IHI is a major force in healthcare. “IHI provides millions of people in health care with methods, tools, and resources to make care better, safer, and more equitable,” as the Institute describes itself. The conference brings together 3,000 healthcare leaders each year.

At this year’s conference, Will described what SHARE members have been doing to redesign their work through Unit Based Teams, and why that matters. You can read the full text of Will’s remarks here.

Spoiler alert: yes, UBTs are making a difference. To see the full deck of slides that Will presented about what difference they’ve made [[[click here]]]

Social security Fairness act provides social security benefits to state employees (and Former State employees)

We’ve got good news for long-term SHARE members who have both a state pension and Social Security credit, especially those who were UMass employees with more than ten years of service before the merger. The Social Security Fairness Act, which has passed in the House and Senate, and now awaits signature by President Biden, would eliminate the Social Security credit offset for state pensions. The measure would expand Social Security benefits to public sector workers who also collect pensions, including teachers, firefighters, and police officers, in addition to healthcare workers. Read more here.

Careers: Embracing the Squiggle

Most careers don’t take a straight path, and many make surprising turns. SHARE-UMass Memorial Continuous Improvement Coach Joan Perrault had the opportunity to speak about her own circuitous (and fascinating!) route to her current job — and what she’s learned along the way — as the featured guest on the Embrace the Squiggle podcast. It’s an inspiring listen, and a great way to spend a commute or time folding laundry. Check it out here!

Happy Holidays

Our union is bigger than ever, with more members, more job titles, and more responsibility than ever before. The SHARE Organizing staff is so proud of the work that SHARE members do, and appreciative of the fact that that work doesn’t stop for the holidays. Thank you for everything you do in your important role. We wish you a meaningful and rejuvenating season, infused with warmth, and sprinkled with quiet moments and enormous smiles. Happy holidays!

SHARE Updates: Happy Thanksgiving! UBT Updates, Corrections & More . . .

We hope you’re all getting ready for a wonderful Thanksgiving full of (union made) food, fun, and family. The SHARE organizing staff is grateful for countless things that SHARE members do every day to take care of people who come to our hospital for help. There are always SHARE members doing critical work, around the clock, every day, including holidays. We’re grateful for that, and continually grateful to be able to participate in sustaining and improving that important work.

And, this is too good not to share: in case you missed the scene outside of the ACC last week, check out this colorful view from the UBT huddle in the Orthopedics Clinic!

CT UBTs: Improvements All Around!

We apologize that, in our previous mailing, we made a “department identification error,” and mixed up two important projects that SHARE members have successfully implemented in the CT departments at UMass Memorial. Thank you to those SHARE members who highlighted the mistake!

At the recent visit from Catalysis leaders, the University CT department presented about their IV Room project, as described below, which has resulted in a 20% reduction in wait times for patients. You may recognize the project as the winner of UMass Memorial’s “2023 Innovators of the Year.”

UBT Co-Leads Julie Parker and Matt Geary (not pictured, Co-Lead Micah Levine.)

This poster from the UBT Fair describes their project and what it’s meant for patients and caregivers in the University CT department

In the previous post, we described a great success story from a different Unit Based Team, in which union members identified an opportunity to reduce the amount of barium that patients need to drink before imaging. That project was actually initiated by the Memorial campus CT department UBT, pictured below. They recently presented that project to the Labor Management Partnership Council, and at a UBT Peer Learning event. As you might guess from their presentation slide, they had a good time doing it . . .

Patients must drink the barium sulfate before a CT procedure in order for the Technologists to obtain images, but it tastes unpleasant and is uncomfortable for patients to ingest. SHARE Technologists came to recognize that improvements in imaging technology might reduce the amount of contrast solution needed, so they set up a project that tested the image quality when patients drank only one dose, rather than two. They discovered that cutting the dose in half still yields excellent results, and allows SHARE members to save the hospital over $35,000 annually system-wide. More importantly, the new process relieves patients that they don’t have to drink so much of it, and makes it easier and more efficient for SHARE members to help patients through their scans.

Memorial UBT Co-Leads Matt Geary, Katie Baglini, Gabe Alvarez

Memorial Campus CT UBT. Pictured here are: back row, l-r Elton Vathi,  Julie Cosenza, Nina DiPilato, Dan DiPilato, front row l-r: Amy Miller, Christian Guardado, Katie Baglini (not pictured: Co-Leads Gabe Alvarez & Matt Geary) 

SHARE Updates: New SHARE Union at CHA, 2025 Dues Increase, and UBT Highlights

New SHARE Union at Cambridge Health Alliance

Physician Associates, Attending Physicians, and Psychologists have decided to form a new union at Cambridge Health Alliance — SHARE CHA!

The clinicians, who work at sites in eastern Massachusetts cities and towns including Cambridge, Somerville, Malden, and Everett, are creating their union to participate directly in the decisions that affect them at work. They’ve chosen to affiliate with our own union, SHARE, because they value our approaches, including forming structures such as Unit Based Teams, which puts SHARE members’ expertise in decision-making roles, and our strategies, such as joint-lobbying, in which our union works alongside hospital leaders, advocating directly to legislators to make funding and districting choices that keep things fair for safety net hospitals like ours.

“The bigger goal is really based on reshaping the health care system so that those who are providing direct care to patients can bring their experience and expertise to the table,” said SHARE Organizer Andrea Caceres in an interview with the Boston Globe.

SHARE-CHA will be its own new union local, but will continue to work closely with our unions at UMass Memorial Hospital and UMass Chan Medical School to develop ideas for improving patient care and the ways that we give it.

2025 Dues Rates Announced

Dues are an investment that union members make in themselves and their co-workers. AFSCME, SHARE’s parent union, has announced dues rates increases for the upcoming year.

The 2025 regular weekly dues rate for SHARE members will be $11.20. That is an increase of 42 cents per paycheck, or roughly one cent per hour. For members working 20 hours/week, the 2025 weekly rate will be $8.39. The new rates will be reflected in the first paycheck in January.

To learn more about dues — including how dues amounts are determined, what the money pays for, and how your investment pays off directly for you — read more here.

SHARE UBTs Get International Attention

On Halloween this year, SHARE Unit Based Teams from the Oncology Clinic, Vascular Surgery Office, University CT, and Nuclear Medicine presented successes from their projects to system leaders from hospital networks around North America who belong to a not-for-profit organization, Catalysis. The organization has a vision “to transform the healthcare industry through experiments, collaboration and education.”

Catalysis representatives were curious to better understand our union’s Labor Management Partnership, and to learn how projects developed by SHARE members were improving patient care, creating cost-savings, and making our work as caregivers more efficient and more meaningful.

Kellie Morton, a SHARE member of the Cancer Clinic UBT, described their heartwarming project to provide fitting head coverings for all patients undergoing cancer treatments. Before, options were limited and unnatural on some patients. However, after taking advantage of a Seed Equity grant, SHARE members were able to provide wigs, hats, and other head coverings that suited a more diverse range of patients.

Halloween gave UBT Coaches Joan Perrault and Will Erickson the opportunity to reveal their true identities as The Wastebusters!

Welcoming Alaina Anderson to the Partnership Office

And, last but not least, we’re excited to share this exciting announcement from our friends in the SHARE-UMass Memorial Partnership office!

Alaina Anderson, UBT Program Coordinator

We write to introduce you to our new UBT Program Coordinator, Alaina Anderson!  Alaina joins us most recently from the Marlboro Hospital ED and has already been making great impressions in her first few days with us.  In the coming weeks we’re going to be bringing her with us to many of your UBT meetings, co-cos and preps to help her get a deep understanding of what we’re up to, so we hope you’ll get the chance to meet her soon.  In addition to shepherding our UBT program schedules and activities, Alaina is going to be a great resource to you in your UBT and LMP project work.  Please join us in welcoming Alaina!

SHARE Updates: MA Apprenticeship Program, UnionPlus How-To, and More

to have a say, we have to participate

SHARE encourages you to get out and vote!

Earn and Learn with the Medical Assistant Training Program

How the pay works for SHARE members who are admitted to the Medical Assistant Registered Apprenticeship program:

The flyer shown above for the Medical Assistant Apprenticeship program only lists the starting pay if you are coming from outside of SHARE. If you are already a SHARE member, your pay rate will be determined by your current grade. The promotional increase rules decide how much your rate would go up. The promotional increase is 5% per grade. (If that math doesn’t land your rate on a platform in the grade, the rate will be rounded up to the next platform.)

Medical Assistant Trainee is a NSG5 title.

Medical Assistant, Certified is a NSG6 title.

  • Example: If you transfer from a NSG3 job, like PCA 1, to the Medical Assistant Trainee title, that’s 2 grades higher. So you would get a 10% increase. You would get an additional 5% when you get certified.

  • Example: If you transfer from a NSG4 job, like PCA 2, to the Medical Assistant Trainee title, that’s 1 grades higher. So you would get a 5% increase. You would get an additional 5% when you get certified.

Note: If you transfer from a title in a higher grade, your pay rate would be decreased 5% per grade.

A Tip for Taking Advantage of Union Plus Programs

In our last email, we highlighted the valuable benefits available through the UnionPlus program, everything from legal help to discounted movie tickets to educational opportunities.

Thank you to those who reached out and reminded us that SHARE is not listed as an option in the registration for the program. To sign up, you’ll need to select our parent union, AFSCME, American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees, in the dropdown menu. Our union is also identified as AFSCME Local 3900.

SHARE Updates: Make the Most of Your Raise, Career Pathways, and More!

Raises came at the beginning of October, and now that we’re in the Open Enrollment period, it’s a good time to be thinking about your own financial and retirement planning. Below you can find directions on how to check your raise and ways to make your money go further.

Former SHARE union co-president and CT Tech Jay Hagan provided brilliant patient care at UMass Memorial for several decades. And now he’s now making the most of the SHARE retirement benefits!

UMass Memorial Legal Services

In addition to investing in your future self by upping your contribution to your 401k, you might consider using the UMass Memorial Legal Assistance Plan to prepare for the future.

Former SHARE Union President Jay Hagan used those services before his own retirement, and had good things to say about it. “Before, I called a financial advisor, and was told that the services I wanted would cost me three or four thousand dollars. So, instead, I got set up with the Legal Assistance Plan for one year, and saved a lot.

“I called MetLaw and they provided me a list of local lawyers to choose from. I met with one a couple of times . . . he was friendly and competent. There are additional expenses that you have to pay to Massachusetts for things like recording fees, but all of the legal bills get directly to MetLaw. If someone dies, it’s bad enough to grieve, and I don’t want my wife or me to have worry about all this then. I’m so glad I’ve got my will and everything taken care of.”

Could a Health Care Flexible Spending Account Work for You?

UnionPlus Benefits for SHARE Members

If you’re signed up for SHARE, you’re also eligible for the perks, discounts, and low-cost programs for union members through the nationwide UnionPlus program, which also includes financial services such as personal loans, student debt help, credit card debt settlement, and more.

How to Check Your Raise

The recent raise became effective 9/29/24, and was reflected in the first paycheck after that date.

Your raise was 4.5% of your old hourly rate, or $1.00 per hour, whichever amount was larger.

For more information about the structure of the raise, and how to calculate your own, and what happens if your pay has reached the Max Cap, check out this page about raises.

Many more of the most common questions are answered in this FAQ from the last contract agreement. This raise is the third of four annual raises negotiated for this contract period.

You can confirm that your raise was processed in Workday. Just log in and go to your profile, then select “Compensation” (see example image below from the Workday app.)

If you have questions or concerns about your raise, please contact the SHARE Organizer for your area. You can also call SHARE at 508-929-4020 or email share.comment@theshareunion.org.

You will see your Pay Raise reflected in the “Compensation” section of Workday, as well as in your “Pay Change History”

Do You Know Someone Who Would Like to Become a CT Technologist?

SHARE Updates: PCA Pathway Program, Free English Classes, and Unit Based Teams

PCA Pathway Program Now Accepting Applications

Congratulations to the first graduating cohort of the PCA Pathway Program! They’re now on-the-job as SHARE members, caring for patients at UMass Memorial.

Do you know someone who wants to begin a career at UMass Memorial working on the nursing floors? The Patient Care Associate Program is now open to friends and family of SHARE members!

A Strong Summer for Unit Based Teams

First, the bittersweet news: after helping establish the SHARE-UMass Memorial Partnership Office over the past few years, our beloved UBT Program Coordinator, Stephanie Pepi, has accepted another job at UMass Memorial. We wish you the best in Ophthamology, Steph!

There was nothing bittersweet about the recent FMCS/LERA conference in NYC, where leaders from SHARE and UMass Memorial presented to an international audience about the importance of UBTs.

U.S. Secretary of Labor Julie Su (above, middle left) even pulled the presenters into a meeting to talk about the Labor-Management projects that SHARE members are pioneering on the front lines.

SHARE members Celebrate success — and Share what they’ve Learned — at the 2024 UBT Fairs

The most exciting news for Unit Based Teams this Summer is the fantastic success of the UBT Fairs on both the Memorial and University Campuses, where SHARE members showed off their projects to over 1000 attendees. If you missed it, be sure to check out the most recent UBT Newsletter!

Click the image above for lots more photos of UBT Fair fun

Free English Classes for UMass Memorial Caregivers

SHARE Updates: Quarantine, PCA Pathway Program, Scholarships, and more

Dear SHARE member, we heard last week that some people had issues with the email from SHARE, that it went straight into your work-email’s quarantine system.

So! We’re repeating some important scholarship information below, along with an announcement about UMass Memorial’s PCA Pathway Program: refer a friend or family-member to that, and get a $3,000 referral bonus!

Thank you for understanding about the redundancy. And thank you to those who let us know that SHARE emails weren’t getting through smoothly . . .

Patient Care Associate Pathway

Learn more about the PCA Pathway program here

Couillard Fund Scholarships for Nursing Education

Four (4) Couillard Fund Scholarships of $2,500 each will be awarded to active UMMH Medical Center clinical support staff or LPNs currently enrolled in a program leading to an RN licensure. The scholarship deadline is April 8th. Learn more, and apply, here.

Central Mass AFL/CIO College Scholarships

SHARE members again have the opportunity to apply for a valuable education resource: the Central Massachusetts AFL-CIO College Scholarship. The lottery for these scholarships will be open to any SHARE members, as well as children and grandchildren of our members, who will graduate from high school this year and attend college next year. We’d love to see more winners from SHARE this year. Learn more and apply to this fellowship here

UMass Memorial Hospital Named Among World’s Best

In case you missed it, Newsweek recently named the top 100 best hospitals in the world as ranked by an independent data-gathering firm. Fifteen of those hospitals are right here in Massachusetts, including our own UMass Memorial. UMass Memorial works because SHARE members do, and it’s nice to see that hard work recognized. Read more here.

New “Direct FilE” Service makes Filing for Taxes Easier

A new tax filing service called Direct File will allow eligible taxpayers to file their taxes online directly with the IRS—for free. The Direct File service will be available in English and Spanish, works on mobile devices as easily as it does tablets, laptops and desktop computers, and includes direct and dedicated customer support from the IRS. During the 2024 pilot, Direct File will support most simple returns. Learn more here.

SHARE Updates: MLK Day, Education Opportunities & More

Happy Martin Luther King Day

As you may remember, our own union is very directly linked to Dr. Martin Luther King, and owes a debt of gratitude to his work toward social justice through organized labor. Research by the Economic Policy Institute points out that unions promote equity in key ways:

  • Unions reduce racial and ethnic pay gaps

  • Racial wealth gaps are much smaller for union members

  • Unions boost women’s pay (including in SHARE, whose membership is over 80% women)

  • Unions protect workers from discriminatory and retaliatory firings

  • Unions strengthen our democracy

Although our work as caregivers never allows for all of us to take a day off together, we’re proud that UMass Memorial Medical Center has agreed through our Contract to recognize Martin Luther King Day as an official holiday. SHARE calls on the other entities within UMass Memorial network, including Marlboro Hospital, to acknowledge the importance of this day.

SHARE honors Dr. King, and is honored to continue in service of the goals that he strove toward. After all, we know that the arc of the moral universe isn’t going to bend itself.

New education & College Debt Forgivneness Opportunities

Union Plus Scholarship Deadline: January 31

As a member of SHARE, you may qualify for one of several Union Plus Scholarships. The Union Plus Scholarship awards are presented annually to union members or members of their families who want to begin or continue their post-secondary education. Amounts range from $500 to $4,000. These one-time cash awards are for study beginning in the Fall of 2024. Current and retired members of participating unions, their spouses and their dependent children (as defined by IRS regulations). At least one year of continuous union membership by the applicant, applicant's spouse or parent (if applicant is a dependent). Learn more about scholarships here.

Union Plus Education Benefits

Union Plus College is back with new tools and opportunities for making affordable education a reality for union members. Their new program, Education Marketplace, is powered by Edvance and gives you and your union family access to regionally-accredited schools and programs to meet your schedule, interests, career goals and budget. Find Associates and Bachelors degrees that meet your needs, including 100% online classes, with up to 50% off tuition. Learn more about the Union Plus College benefit here.

Federal Student Loan Debt Relief

According to a recent NPR report, “Anyone who borrowed $12,000 or less in federal student loans and has been in repayment for at least 10 years will have their debts automatically erased in February, as long as they first enroll in the Biden administration's new income-based repayment plan known as SAVE.” See https://studentaid.gov/ for more information.

About the 2024 Dues Increases

You may have noticed that your paycheck has not yet reflected the recently announced 2024 dues increase. UMass Memorial tells us that these deductions are now scheduled to begin with next week’s paycheck.

How to Decline covid and Flu shots in compliance with UMass Memorial’s vaccination Policy

Although all employees of UMass Memorial are required to take action in accordance with the hospital’s flu and Covid vaccine policies, it is no longer required to get either of the shots as a condition of employment. No one has to get the flu vaccine or the COVID vaccine, they just have to fill out the paperwork to decline, per DPH.

In case you missed it, SHARE had a big year in 2023. Check out the SHARE website for some of our year’s greatest hits

SHARE Updates: Happy Holidays and More

2024 Dues Rates Announced

AFSCME, SHARE’s parent union, has announced dues rates increases for the upcoming year. The 2024 regular weekly dues rate for SHARE members will be $10.78. That is an increase of $0.55 per paycheck, or slightly more than one cent per hour. For members working 20 hours/week, the 2024 weekly rate will be $8.07.

To learn more about dues, including how they’re calculated, and why they’re a cost-effective investment in yourself and your co-workers, click here.

Free Surgical Tech Certificate Program

UMass Memorial and Lasell University are partnering to offer a one-year accredited accelerated course for in-demand Surgical Technician jobs. This “earn and learn” program is designed to allow caregivers to do their coursework while working. Learn more, including how to register for one of the two information sessions in January, here.

Partnership growing with Unit Based Teams

The expanded SHARE UMass Memorial Partnership office is hitting its stride, supporting the addition of even more teams. Now, well over half of SHARE members work in departments attached to Unit Based Teams. The coaches are also working with existing teams to further strengthen and develop so that they can fulfill their main purpose: making it easier for SHARE members to enjoy work and do work you can be proud of.

In case you missed it on the Hub, you can read more about the progress here, and take a peak at the first-ever Level 4 Unit Based Team in the Vascular Surgery office. Congratulations all around!

Continued frustration with the Reset of time-off caps

Contrary to what SHARE reported last week, the Paid Time Off cap for part-time employees will be the same as the level for 40-hour employees, not lower. (Which means that the chart at the bottom of this previous blog post contains the accurate information for all members.) Some of you may have cashed out time thinking you would lose it (to your sick bank) when you didn’t need to.

We are really sorry about the bad information. SHARE worked hard to get the correct information from the hospital so that we could get it out to all SHARE members, in an impossibly short time-line. The hospital confirmed the wrong caps for part-timers. We take our role as providing reliable information to SHARE members very seriously, and we are quite frustrated with the hospital about this whole PTO cap-cutting process.

SHARE advocated strongly for a further extension of the higher COVID-temporary PTO caps, since SHARE members got so little notice to remind us when they were going back down. In spite of all the good reasons to extend, or pay out the excess time, or add another cash-out, the hospital leadership ultimately decided to cut the caps back down to the regular, negotiated caps on December 31, 2023, with no flexibility. We know that, due to continued surges in patient volume and short-staffing, some SHARE members still have not been able to spend-down their time-off hours post-COVID. Cutting the PTO banks with so little notice was the wrong thing to do.

About the Hospital’s Vaccination Policy

Although all employees of UMass Memorial are required to take action in accordance with the hospital’s flu and Covid vaccine policies, it is no longer required to get either of the shots as a condition of employment. No one has to get the flu vaccine or the COVID vaccine, they just have to fill out the paperwork to decline, per DPH. If you do decline the flu shot, you will have to wear a mask in clinical areas.

You do not need to mask because you decline the Covid shot. That said, masking has resumed in some areas: the hospital’s masking policy requires everyone, regardless of booster status, to mask for patient encounters when more than ten caregivers are out with COVID.

Happy Holidays from SHARE

The SHARE organizing staff hope that you and yours have a truly wonderful season . . .

SHARE Thanksgiving Update: Scholarships, Inclement Weather, and More . . .

UMass Memorial Medical Assistant Apprenticeships Announced

SHARE organizers Kellie Morton and Janet Wilder joined UMass Memorial leadership and Massachusetts Secretary of Labor Lauren Jones at a recent press conference to announce a forthcoming “Earn and Learn” apprenticeship program. With this apprenticeship — the first healthcare apprenticeship in Massachusetts — employees will be able to advance their schooling and their career while working. Details, including how to apply, will be announced in the coming months, and posted on the SHARE website. Read the full post.

“I’ve worked at UMass Memorial for 31 years,” says Kellie Morton, Medical Office Assistant in the Oncology Clinic and part-time SHARE Organizer, seen here with SHARE Organizer Janet Wilder. “I started with a training class in Home Health offered by the hospital, and I’ve worked my way up. . . . We’re excited to help train the new apprentices by precepting them during their on-the-job training. I want everyone to have opportunities!”

UMass Memorial’s Interim President Justin Precourt and Director of Workforce Development and Planning Kelly Aiken with Massachusetts Secretary of Labor Lauren Jones.

Watch the story on local SpectrumNews1.

Learn to Be a PCA

Are you interested to learn to be a PCA (Patient Care Associate) and take care of patients on the inpatient nursing floors? Or maybe you know someone else who is? Check out this new training program!

Improve Your English Language Skills

UMass Memorial’s free Workplace English Fall 2023 courses are already underway, but there are still some spaces left. These online courses are for any caregiver wanting to grow their English language abilities, for learners at any skill level. Learn more here.

Bad Weather Ahead?

SHARE’s contract agreement with UMass Memorial says this: "All employees are expected to report to work, unless the severe weather plan in their department allows them to stay home.” Of course, your work area may benefit from something better tailored to the work that you do. If you do not know if there’s a department-specific plan for your area, you should check with your supervisor or manager. The practice of the department should remain the same from year-to-year, and not change without negotiation between department leadership and the SHARE members. To learn more about the policy, and how SHARE’s contract creates opportunities for improving the plans where you work, read this recent post . . .

Massachusetts AFL-CIO Scholarship

When it comes to being awarded union scholarships, SHARE members have a strong record. We’re looking forward to seeing more SHARE families benefit from this new round of available aid . . .

The Annual AFL-CIO Scholarship and Labor Education Program is in its 65th year. Through the program, the Massachusetts AFL-CIO and affiliated unions are proud to award financial resources to high school students pursuing trade union programs or college/university study. ­The Massachusetts AFL-CIO administers half a million dollars of scholarship awards on behalf of unions and labor councils throughout the state. Individual awards range from $500 to $16,000. You can view a list of available awards and their criteria here.

In order to be eligible for a scholarship, students must be a senior in high school and take the Labor History Exam. December 22, 2023 is the last day to register. For more information, including answers to Frequently Asked Questions and a Labor History Study Guide, visit https://massaflcio.org/scholarships

What’s Going on with Inpatient Volume?

SHARE members on the inpatient nursing floors and in the Emergency Rooms are dealing every day with the hard reality of our hospital being at Level 5 capacity status.

At the recent LMPC meeting, hospital leaders explained to SHARE that the high patient volume is caused by a combination of factors, including delayed care and short staffing . . . both inside hospitals, and in the places hospitals discharge patients to, such as nursing homes, rehabs and behavioral health settings. See visuals describing the increased volume — and our hospital’s plan to deal with it — here.

Topping Off Paid Family Medical Leave

The passage of the Family Medical Leave Ac (FMLA) in 1993 provided critical job protections for American workers and their families. The Massachusetts Paid Family Medical Leave (PFML) furthered those protections by helping workers here avoid the often impossible choice between getting paid and taking time to get healthy. However, until now, even though Massachusetts provided pay to those taking PFML leave, workers still generally couldn’t maintain their full income.

Thanks to a new provision, Massachusetts employees can now use the Paid Time Off that they’ve accrued through their employer to top-off their income while on medical leave. For more details, check out these answers to Frequently Asked Questions.

Working On Veterans Day

Because Veterans Day landed on a Saturday this year, many SHARE members had questions about holiday pay. The SHARE/UMass Memorial Contract Agreement points out that, for minor holidays such as Veterans Day: “SHARE members who work Monday through Friday will receive the holiday benefit on the observed holiday, except that the holiday differential will only be paid for hours worked on the actual holiday. Holiday differential will not be paid for working on observed holidays that are different from the actual holiday.” (page 58)

Working Around thanksgiving

We know that the work itself can often be more complicated around the holidays. SHARE has negotiated in several areas over the years for an increased number of employees to take off the day after Thanksgiving. We hear that, for still other members, it makes more sense to be home for the day. We’ll continue working with your departments, where the demands of the work allow for it, to maximize the number of people who can take the day off.

As always, SHARE is grateful to everyone who will be working and making personal sacrifices to care for patients and keep our work community strong.

Thanksgiving dinner tastes best when it’s prepared with love . . . using union-made ingredients!

SHARE Updates: Retirement Planning, Open Enrollment, and More

Raise time is a good time to start — or increasE — your 401K deduction

Take good care of your future self by taking advantage of UMass Memorial’s 401k contribution match!

Some SHARE members choose this time to increase their contribution because they say they won't miss the money as much if the deduction starts at the same time as the raise. UMass Memorial adds $.50 for each dollar you contribute to your 401k, matching up to 2% of your pay. Learn more here.

required action: Open Enrollment

Monday, October 16 — Friday, October 27

Please note that the hospital is requiring ALL employees to enroll in benefits elections during this year’s shortened open-enrollment period. SHARE is advocating that no one should lose health insurance if they fail to update their choices, but the employer currently maintains that no enrollment = no coverage.

For more information, please see this message from UMass Memorial Hospital.

Rental Assistance Program Kicks Off

The popularity of SHARE’s new Rental Assistance Program has been massive, and is offering much-needed financial support at a time when many SHARE members need it most. The spike in Central Massachusetts rental costs has made it so hard to produce first-,last- and security deposit, but this loan aims to address this need. Please note that the loan is only applicable to those members actively moving to a new place: UMass Five Credit Union may require proof-of-lease to approve this low-interest loan.

Visit the SHARE website for more about the Rental Assistance Loan

Free Covid-19 Test Kits

Since September 25, every U.S. household has again become eligible to place an order to receive four more free COVID-19 rapid tests delivered directly to their home. Order your free kits from covid.gov

* Before You Throw Out "Expired" Tests: Check FDA's website to see if your COVID-19 tests' expiration dates have been extended.

The SHARE Unit Based Team (UBT) at Barre Family Health Center only began in April of 2022, but has quickly climbed the ranks to become one of the pioneering Teams to achieve Level 3 on the Path to Performance.

. . . and the Vascular office has just become one of the very first teams to reach Level 4 UBT status. Congratulations on charting the way!

SHARE Updates: Contract Events, Childcare, Educational Opportunities, and More . . .

CONTRACT DISTRIBUTION EVENTS

Want to curl up with a paper version of the contract in front of the fire?

Get your copy of the red book — and talk with SHARE Organizers about any questions you’ve got — at an upcoming Contract Distribution Event.

  • UNIVERSITY — Tuesday, Sept 12 — Prescription Center hallway (aka “four corners”) — 11:30-1:30

  • MEMORIAL — Tuesday, Sept 19 — across from Cafeteria — 11:30-1:30

If you’d like a SHARE Rep to bring copies of the contract to your department or worksite, please contact SHARE.

Backup Childcare through Bright Horizons

In conjunction with UMass Memorial Hospital, Bright Horizons provides a backup childcare option to employees for holidays, breaks, professional development days, and more. Find more information and apply here.

FREE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

In last week’s email update, we pointed out that Quinsigamond Community College is working together with the MassReconnect program to offer the opportunity to earn free Associate Degrees and certificates for adults twenty-five years and older. But! The MassReconnect program isn’t limited to QCC: the MassReconnect program means that ALL 15 community colleges in Massachusetts are FREE to students who qualify for this program! Learn more here.

Federal Student Loan Repayments Resume in October

After a pause during the pandemic, federal student loans have again begun accruing interest, and payments will need to be made again beginning in October, to the frustration of many.

Find information and resources for union members belonging to AFSCME (SHARE’s parent union) in this message on the SHARE Blog.

The entire SHARE Contract Bargaining Agreement with UMass Memorial is online

Use the above link to zoom in, read, and print the information you need.

Make it easy, using your browser’s search tools and the SHARE site FAQ’s.



SHARE Labor Day Updates

Happy Labor Day! We hope you’re enjoying the sunshine today, and grateful to those SHARE members who are working on the holiday to take care of patients and our hospital.

Have We Lost the Spirit of Labor Day?

That’s the question asked in this short piece about the history and meaning of Labor Day, who points out that workers’ concerns and needs continue to evolve.

You still sometimes hear claims that unions have outlived their relevance. But SHARE members know that — even with good bosses, in good workplaces — concerns with working conditions continue. Only an independent source of power like a union can provide safe and effective ways for workers’ voices to consistently make a difference at work.

MassReconnect: Free Community College

Quinsigamond Community College is offering the opportunity to earn free Associate Degrees and certificates for adults twenty-five years and older. For more details, and to apply to learn more, visit QCC’s MassReconnect website.

Finding What You Need

The fully-searchable SHARE contract is now online, and distribution events for paper copies will be announced very soon. But do you know how to find what you want to know on the SHARE website?

The site is full of other useful information. We recently added a guide to applying for Leaves of Absence to the “Getting Help” page, for example. You can find that, and a whole lot more, by using the site’s search tools. Still have questions? Contact us!

SHARE Updates: Free Surgical Tech Certificate Program, Health Fair, and More

Read on for a series of updates from UMass Memorial that are important to SHARE members . . .

Updates from UMass Memorial Leadership

  • The ARE deadline has been extended to August 31st.  This is an important Joint Commission requirement.  Please be sure to complete them prior to the deadline.

  • Family Fun Day, September 10th 3:00pm-7:00 – for details, please check for an email sent from UMass Memorial on August 2nd.  Be sure to register to reserve your spot. 

SHARE Partnership Special: New Videos, UBTs in the National Spotlight, and More!

SHARE has designed, negotiated for, and cultivated the Unit Based Team program as a powerful way for members to be directly involved in the design of our own work. This special newsletter highlights exciting developments since the recent success of the UBT Fair.

SHARE Members on Youtube

With the help of our parent union, AFSCME, we’ve developed three short videos featuring SHARE members who describe what UBTs are, the successes they’ve had, and how the teams make a difference in their work.

All three UBT videos are now prominently featured on the SHARE homepage. Check them out! See anybody you know?

UBTs in the National Spotlight

The US Department of Labor has highlighted the Unit Based Teams in a few of their recent publications and presentations. Read more on the SHARE blog . . .

Congratulations to SHARE member Wanda Dyer, who was quoted in a recent nationwide DOL bulletin, where Wanda describes, “The Labor-Management Partnership between the hospital and the SHARE union allowed us to be involved in a Unit Based Team (UBT) where I was comfortable talking about the challenges in the workflow.

New UBT Coaches

The joint labor-management SHARE-UMass Memorial Partnership Office is growing! UBT experts Will Erickson and Stephanie Pepi have recently been joined by two new UBT Coaches: Jackie Zhou and Joan Perreault. Both have previously worked at UMass Memorial, already demonstrate exceptional skills, and we think they’re fantastic. They’re eager to help support SHARE members to make the current teams stronger and expand UBTs so that even more SHARE members can participate. Welcome Jackie and Joan! We’re excited you’re here!

Welcome to new UBT Coaches Jackie Zhou and Joan Perreault!

SHARE Updates: Tuition Reimbursement and Home Ownership Help

Tuition reimbursement: Increased and expanded

The new Tuition Reimbursement and loan repayment assistance policy in the SHARE contract negotiated last Fall increases the amount of money available to a full-time SHARE member from $2000 to $5250 per year. In addition, what’s eligible for reimbursement has expanded from just college courses to include certificate programs, and to include student debt repayment.

For more information, read the full new contract language regarding tuition reimbursement. To talk to someone with your questions, call the UMass Memorial Benefits Contact Center @ 508-334-8511.

DEADLINE Next week! Affordable Home Ownership Opportunities with Habitat for Humanity

ICYMI, UMass Memorial Hospital recently announced that Habitat for Humanity MetroWest/Greater Worcester is offering two affordable homeownership opportunities in Sturbridge and Worcester for individuals and families within specific income brackets. If you are in need and meet the eligibility criteria, this could be an excellent opportunity for you. UMass Memorial Health is proud to have partnered with Habitat for Humanity MetroWest/Greater Worcester on these projects to support more affordable housing in our region. Through our Anchor Mission, we provided investment to support the construction of the Sturbridge home, and our physicians volunteered in the construction of the Worcester home. Read more on the SHARE website . . .

Habitat for Humanity home nearing completion in Sturbridge

Union Plus Benefits: Home Ownership Help and More

If you’re not making use of Union Plus benefits, you might be missing out. Union Plus can help with home ownership through the Mortgage Assistance program and the Save My Home Hotline, not to mention personal loans and legal assistance. By being a member of a union, you’re also eligible for discounts negotiated on your behalf — from flowers to car rental to movie tickets — and much, much more . . .

SHARE Updates: UBT Fair, Investing for Beginners, and more

Save the Date: Unit Based Team Fair, Coming this May!

Investing for beginners

Fidelity Investments is hosting two on-site sessions for UMass Memorial employees to learn about investing. During this 30-minute workshop, they’ll introduce basic terms and concepts as well as different investing styles. Check your work inbox for an email from the employer to sign up for one of the free sessions:

April 18 @ Noon, University Campus Amphitheater III (S6-102)

or

April 19 @ Noon, Memorial Campus Amphitheater

While all SHARE members automatically accrue toward retirement through the Defined Benefit Pension, the UMass Memorial 401k plan allows you to save for retirement, pre-tax, with UMass Memorial contributing, too. If you’ve been to a SHARE Retirement Training, you know that retirement experts say we should think of a solid retirement income as a three-legged stool, with the pension serving as one leg, Social Security as a second leg, and your total savings functioning as the third leg.

UMass Memorial adds $.50 for each dollar you contribute to your 401k, matching up to 2% of your pay. Memorial CT Technologist and SHARE Executive Board Member Jay Hagan has served as a member of the SHARE team that has negotiated with management about the current retirement benefits. “I think a lot of SHARE members don’t realize they’re leaving money on the table if they don't save through the 401k,” he says. “My financial advisor tells me, 'if you can afford it, the employer-match is really free money.' You could think of it as the hospital paying you to participate. If you don't use the match, it's like giving the money back.”

Deciding the save money with the 401K is a tough choice for many SHARE members. But the younger you start, the less you have to take out of your check each week to reach your goals. If you have questions about SHARE’s negotiated retirement benefits, please contact the SHARE office. If you have questions about your own 401k, contact Fidelity Investments at 800-343-0860, or log on to your Fidelity account at www.fidelity.com/atwork.

Make Sure Your Tax Withholding status is up-to-date

If you haven’t made changes since the 2020 tax law changes, your filing status will default to single in January. In case you missed the memo from UMass Memorial, you can read it here, along with a short explainer from SHARE.

Team Spotlight: Barre’s Unit based TEam

The Barre Clinic is at it again, having completed a second project thanks to their department’s Unit Based Team. Patients had been arriving to their lab appointments too often with no active orders to complete the labs. Read here about the two interventions they identified to solve the problem, saving time and hassle for the SHARE members who work there and their patients.

SHARE Updates: Job Fair, Staffing Shortage, Kronos, UBT Spotlight, and More

JOB Fair: This Saturday, March 25!

Do you have friends and family who are looking for work? SHARE encourages you to let them know about UMass Memorial’s job fair this Saturday, March 25, from 10am-2pm at the Church of the Pentecost, 41 Providence Street, Worcester. The hospital’s event emphasizes the value of the local Ghanaian community to our hospital community, but all job-seekers are welcome. See this flyer for more details.

In the News: The Staffing Shortage

As you know, SHARE members are feeling the burden of the healthcare staffing shortage . . . especially due to short-staffing in their departments. This article from GBH News points out that “Massachusetts hospitals paid a staggering $1.52 billion last year to hire temporary hospital workers, mostly ‘travel nurses,’ amid a labor shortage that contributed to record financial losses for many institutions.” The article cites UMass Memorial’s own CFO, vice president and treasurer, Sergio Melgar; among other things, he says that our hospital ”went into FY 2022 with 600 open jobs, and filling those vacancies with temporary workers was expensive. In some cases, he said, traveling workers were paid triple times the cost of pre-COVID rates.”

 

UNit Based TEams: Learning from Each Other

At the beginning of March, three dozen Unit Based Team (UBT) Co-Leads and Co-Sponsors joined together for a monthly Peer-Learning event. Participants learned about a useful project at Hahnemann Internal Medicine (see below). They also learned that researchers from Rutgers University are working to understand the impact that UBTs have on frontline work and workers, as well as how to convert an Idea Board idea into a UBT project. Plus! UBT leaders discussed ideas for the upcoming SHARE UBT Fair on May 10th. Everyone is invited. Keep your eyes peeled for more details about that!

Hahnemann Internal Medicine and the Book of Knowledge: it may sound like a novel in the Harry Potter series, but the Unit Based Team in Hahnemann Internal Medicine has created a way to make everyday information — as well as not-so-frequently-asked questions — easily accessible to the staff there. It’s saving SHARE members time and headaches, and could be a useful example for other departments. Learn more about what they've done.

KRONOS Update

SHARE Organizers met again with executive leadership of UMass Memorial for an update about what’s gotten back to normal, and what hasn’t yet, since the international Kronos cyber-attack. The short version:

  • Underpayment discrepancies due to Kronos have now all been processed

  • Overpayment recoupment is likely to begin in March

  • Paid Time Off/Earned Time is believed now to be correct in your bank

For all the details, see the full Kronos update post on the SHARE blog.

The SHARE Union / 50 Lake Avenue, Worcester, MA 01604 / Phone: (508) 929-4020 / Fax: (508) 929-4040