Cyndi Loza

Union nurses at Saint Mary’s Regional Medical Center will finish voting on a new union contract tonight after those at Renown Regional Medical Center ratified theirs Tuesday.

Last week, representatives of Saint Mary’s California Nurses Association and Renown’s Service Employees International Union agreed to contracts, saying they won major negotiating points that include nurse-to-patient ratios.

Saint Mary’s nurses began voting Thursday morning and will continue through 9 p.m. today. Votes will be counted at 9:30 p.m.

“I’m very pleased with the contract overall,” said Kevin Redner, 49, a Saint Mary’s registered nurse who voted Thursday. “Just about every nurse we’ve seen is very happy with it.”

The Renown contract was good for the hospital, said registered nurse Robin Marquez, 47, of Reno.

“I think we made some good improvements for the hospital, and we’re heading in the right direction,” Marquez said. “Nurses deserve respect and are on the front line of patient care.”

Other contract points

Other bargaining points at both hospitals were pay increases of at least 27 percent and improved health care plans.

Nurses at Saint Mary’s will receive an average pay increase of 29.5 percent over four years, although 16 percent comes in the first 10 months of the contract.

Nurses at Renown will receive a guaranteed minimum 27 percent salary increase.

“The tough part now is going to be holding them accountable for what they’ve agreed to,” Marquez said. “We’ve asked for this, and now, we’re all responsible for keeping this on the straight and narrow.”

The agreement with CNA nurses will help keep Saint Mary’s competitive in the marketplace, management said in a statement issued last week.

“We are pleased to have reached agreement on contract language, which will help Saint Mary’s keep its No. 1 quality rating in Nevada,” Saint Mary’s management said. “Together with our employees, our goal is to remain the employer of choice in the Reno area and establish pay, benefits and working conditions, which will help retain and attract the best and brightest nurses.”

Marquez and Redner were excited about the nurse-to-patient ratio in their contracts.

“It’s quite a historical contract because we’ve won the California state mandated nurse-to-paint ratio,” Redner said.

Nurse-to-patient ratios, established by California law, aim to help curb nurse burnout and improve the patient care at both Reno hospitals, union officials said.

The ratio at both hospitals will vary by unit but will include one nurse for every two patents in critical care and one-to-six on general medical or post-surgical floors.