The dawn of a brighter day

One of the problems with American business today, as I see it, is that too much emphasis is placed on the short term to the detriment of the long term health of an organization. What's the return, the profit, the operating margin, the stock dividend, this quarter, this year? There is all this pressure to please the stockholders and the boards. The problem is that what is good for the short term is often not so good for the long term health of the organization. We are in the process of building an organization, the Federation of Backus Nurses. I feel certain we need to look long term. Ask yourself, where will this local be in 5, 10, 20, or more years. The decisions we make now will determine that. For me I always go back to the reason we organized. We wanted a voice, so we could advocate for our patients, for our families, for ourselves and for the hospital, OUR hospital. We have now gained a voice, at the hospital, in the state, in the country. We are heard. With time our voice will grow stronger and we will learn how to use it. Even now, I feel more empowered to speak my mind if I disagree with what a doctor or an administrator says without fear of retribution. I have you all to back me up, I have AFT CT, AFT njational, and the AFL-CIO to back me up. I am no longer "out there alone", none of us are. Some of the things I know are important to our profession might not happen by the time I retire, but what a legacy to leave the younger nurses if we can hand off to them a strong, united local! A local based on the idea that what's good for all the members is good for the individual. That my friends is what solidarity is all about. That is why we did all this hard work. We already have a culture at Backus of "short term gains" and the "me, me, me". Let us now work towards something better than that. It has started and will continue, our better future is within our grasp. All we have to do is reach for it. All we have to do is show up. That's our part. Our first bargaining session will be August 3 at 5:30 at the Holiday Inn in Norwich. We will sit across the table from the management team. Sit with us! Show that it's a new day at Backus, a brighter day, a better future!