May 2002 OHSU Internal Communications

May 10, 2002

Lessons Learned – ONA Strike 2001-02

Susan Allen, University News and Publications

Internal strike communication goals

Provide accurate updates about status of contract negotiations/mediations.
Prepare internal audiences for work stoppage (changes in schedules, traffic, etc.)
Reassure patients about the care they will receive care during the work stoppage.
Ensure internal and external messages are consistent.
Prepare internal audiences for what they might see in the media.

Internal Communications guiding principles during a strike

Internal audiences can be our best or worst PR tool depending on how well we keep them informed.
Internal audiences will form their own opinions; we need to provide them facts so they can do so intelligently.
If we don't communicate with our employees, they become the general public and will form their opinions based on what they see/read in the media.
Employees may feel belittled, maligned or threatened by the rhetoric of the strikers, we need to keep publicizing internally (and externally) the good aspects of our institution.
Existing internal communication challenges will be magnified during a strike. Take it for granted that some employees will be grateful for the information – others will think you are white-washing or slanting the information – and others don't care.

What we did

Our internal audiences.
- Management, employees, patients, volunteers, board members, friends of the university.

Internal communication tools we used.
- Broad- and narrowcast e-mail messaging, flyers, direct-mail, two newsletters, Internet and intranet.

Messaging before the strike.
- Broadcast e-mail messages (periodic negotiation updates, voting announcements, hot line and information line telephone numbers, parking, safety measures and other strike preparations, working during the strike) with links to more detailed information and charts on O-Zone.
- Narrowcast e-mail messages (nurses Q&A, sample scripts for managers/front line employees, counseling for staff members, talking points for managers, letter to volunteers) with links to PDF-formatted handouts.
- Handouts for patients (English and Spanish in hard copy and online)
- Telephone hot lines (HR negotiation update line and employee feedback line)

Challenges

It's difficult to communicate in an unbiased manner when your organization is being maligned.
We could not (and still cannot) quickly tailor e-mail groups.
Too many broadcast messages could be perceived as spam by employees who are not directly related to clinical care. (Partial solution — short messages announcing an update and providing a link to online details.)
Quick distribution of flyers (Solution — put them online for downloading by clinics.)
The grapevine is faster, but not necessarily more accurate, than formal communication.
Who writes the messages? (Human Resources, Internal Communications)
Who are the messages from? (HR, Administration, Employee Communications, managers)
Who approves the messages?
- Expedite, expedite, expedite. Beat the evening news – if it's not approved by 1 p.m., is it worth sending out?
Communicating directly with the nurses — labor relations issue.
Who is the best source for data for charts?
With everyone moving at warp speed it's easy to task the person standing closest to you, rather than sticking with one central point person who funnels internal communication needs to others as necessary.
Internal, internal communication (within our communication group) so our messages were consistent and we weren't duplicating efforts.