Rocky talks between the University of California and its nurses made progress over the summer, but negotiators are still lacking an agreement in several areas, including wages and health benefits.

In July, negotiators were able to settle on a standard retirement package for UC nurses, following several heated sessions that seemingly hit a standstill the month before when the university accused the California Nurses Association, the union representing UC nurses, of “unfair labor practices.” In the charge, filed with the Public Employee Relations Board, the university claimed that CNA was uncompromising and using “bad-faith negotiating tactics.”

In the last few months, the university has continually accused union officials of breaching “good-faith” talks, and sent a letter to the union in August outlining their concerns.

“[I]n the spirit of a constructive process that will bring forth a good result for our nurses, our patients and the university, I would implore you to encourage the union to communicate honestly and forthrightly,” UC Associate Director of Labor Relations Gayle Cieszkiewicz stated in the letter to union director Beth Kean for UC negotiations.

Meanwhile, CNA officials have accused the university of allying with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who tried to reduce nurse pensions and staffing ratios governing state hospitals in 2005. The union also threatened a strike in July 2005, but was stopped after PERB won a state court injunction on the walkout.

“Unfortunately, we do not believe CNA has approached the negotiations with … commitment, as evidenced by the union’s failures to propose substantive proposals and its repeated strike threats, which began even before bargaining started,” UC Executive Director of Labor Relations Howard Pripas stated in a June press release.

The union’s form of diplomacy set the bitter tone in negotiations, UC officials said.

“CNA has held a long and public battle with the governor,” UC Office of the President spokesman Noel Van Nyhuis stated in a June e-mail. “The union has attempted to try to bring [its] political agenda into negotiations, however, it has nothing to do with negotiating a contract for UC nurses and only serves to stifle progress at the bargaining table.”

CNA’s propositions are meant to attract more to a declining number of California nurses, according to Kean. The university refuted the union’s claims, presenting reports that showed a 13.5-percent salary hike for UC nurses in 2005. In response, union officials attacked the statistic.

“Numbers can be presented in any way to prove the point you’re trying to make,” Kean stated in June. “[The university is] using [its] numbers politically.”

Kean said that the university used numbers from select low-paid local areas to boost its own image in comparison. UCLA Medical Center nurses participated in a rally to protest the university’s stance on staffing issues.

“This is one of the wealthiest and most profitable hospital systems in California, yet they refuse to spend this money where it should be spent, on patient care,” stated Emmanuel Punzalan, a nurse who works at the center, in a press release. “We have been unable to recruit and retain area nurses, in large part because RN salaries are significantly less than other area hospitals. We are fighting to ensure that our patients are cared for by alert, experienced RN staff.”

This year’s negotiations — part of the university’s revisit to key parts of its two-year contract with UC nurses — began in April, but stalled on resolving four issues: wages, meal breaks and health and retirement benefits. Both sides declared an “impasse” in June, and resorted to “fact-finding” sessions to reconcile issues.

As of August, three fact-finding sessions were completed between the university and union, and officials will continue the meetings in late September. If a settlement is not reached during the meeting, the three-member panel governing the process will recommend a final contract for UC and union officials to consider.