Last night, Executive Tara Zrinski asked NorCo Council to approve wage hikes for 27 nurse supervisor positions at Gracedale. She described the proposal as part of an “Operation Stabilization Strategy" to restore stability, strengthen accountability, and secure the long-term future of Gracedale. She acknowledged that immediate action is required.
In a recent visit, Zrinski spoke with several agency nurse supervisors who told her they would be willing to become Gracedale employees if only the county could offer competitive compensation.
The financial disparity is significant:
- Gracedale’s nurses are making approximately $34 per hour.
- The county is paying an agency approximately $31 per hour on top of the nurse’s compensation.
- The resulting cost to the county is approximately $91 per hour for an agency nurse.
- Zrinski said agency supervisors indicated they would consider becoming county employees if their compensation were increased by approximately 40 percent over what the county currently pays.
Her argument was that the county is already spending substantial amounts on agency personnel and could redirect some of that money toward better compensation for its own supervisory nurses. She believes a starting salary of $52 an hour is the "magic number" needed to attract and retain supervisory nurses who actually work for the county instead of an agency.
She is also planning revisions to the pay structure in her 2027 budget, including adding new steps and creating additional starting-salary opportunities.
The agency-supervision problem
Agency employees are currently supervising county employees. She has seen herself and has heard of supervisors on their phones while working, wearing Crocs and simply disregarding county policies because they were not county employees. She believes this upgrade in pay would both reduce reliance on agency nurses and make Gracedale safer and more accountable.
Her point was that county-employed supervisors would have greater authority and accountability over Gracedale employees. Zrinski said having county RNs supervising county staff would therefore not only address the staffing issue but could also contribute to a safer and more accountable Gracedale.
Zrinski also addressed the District Attorney's Grand Jury report concerning Gracedale, which was released last week. She still tried to minimize the matter, noting it addressed deficiencies found in 2025. There have been 5 occasions this year in which Gracedale has been cited for patient assaults, an elopement and failure to provide care.
She said the administration is taking the DA's findings seriously, while noting that the conduct described in the report occurred approximately a year earlier and had already been discussed with County Council on two previous occasions. But she acknowledged that the report has created an additional "sense of urgency." and said several times that the home is in "triage" mode.
In particular, she said the report is affecting Gracedale's public reputation, referrals and overall ability to attract and retain residents and staff.
Zrinski emphasized that the county needs to act immediately rather than simply discuss the problems.
I agree and wonder why she has waited nearly a year to do so.
Council member Dave Holland said that increasing nurses' pay made sense as a first step toward addressing the problems at Gracedale. Council member Jason Boulette added that the proposal could help address the longstanding issue of hiring experienced nurses at the lowest possible step.
She is great at talking so let's see what happens. She has made numerous promises to people.
ReplyDeleteI am disappointed in Holand. He has to man up and call out Kraft and the rubber stamps. He was primarily elected or his Nursing Home experience. The Fake Committee Kraft created is a joke. Tom should make a motion to stop it. He will get a second and a majority of council will back him up. He has to stop thinking these stamps will like him, they only want his loyalty, and votes So will he follow is in the tradition of council members who work for th people or work for the Executive. Gracedale's mission is too important to bend a knee to McClure or Ziinski. As for Bolette, who knows.
It is unfortunate the county lost some great council members.
Kraft did not create that committee and voted against it. It was Holland’s idea and it’s quite clear it is needed. I wrote about this at the time and again yesterday. Holland has tried very hard to offer insight about Gracedale but has been rebuffed and belittled by Kraft and ignored by Zrinski. I suspect what really bothers you about him is his party
DeleteGovernment can never do anything for the good of the people it is time to sell?
ReplyDeleteI have yet to receive a comment from someone who wants to sell Gracedale who actually identifies himself.
Delete"Operation Stabilization Strategy" - sounds like she thinks she's in the CIA
ReplyDeleteAgency supervisors indicated that they "would consider if". Don't give them squat until they guarantee their commitment.
ReplyDeleteYou wonder why she waited for a year to act? Simple answer. The grand jury report caught he with her panties down and forced her to act.
ReplyDeleteAside from the grossly sexist nature of this Anonymous comment, it is also demonstrably incorrect. You do not interview staff, identify issues, determine competitive wage structures, and assure union leadership buy in, all in the less than one week since the Grand Jury report was issued. Clearly this is part of Executive Zrinski's comprehensive strategy for cleaning up the mess that was left for her at Gracedale. I guess if I posted such a ridiculous comment, I'd stay hidden under an Anonymous rock.
Delete-- Joe Welsh
East Allen Twonship
Hi Joe, I'll agree that many of the attacks aimed at Zrinski unfortunately have more to do with her sex than substance. But I do not consider the comment I published "incredibly sexist." Had it been a male exec, and the comment was that he was caught with his pants down, no one would give this a second thought. The use of the word "panties" instead of "pants" to me is a merely the same expression tailored to a woman. I did not care for it, to be honest, but did not think it "incredibly sexist."
DeleteAs for the substance, you are wrong. Zrinski announced several times that Gracedale was in "triage" mode and that there was a "sense of urgency." Shortly after she took office, she announced she would be making changes, but they never came until the Grand Jury report was released. She instead blindly followed the nursing home administration as its license dipped from Regular to Provisional I and then Provisional II. She did nothing after citations for resident assaults, another elopement and attempted to minimize what had happened. She opposed the establishment of an oversight committee.
She instead embraced a continuum of care plan. This is a good idea, but it means nothing unless you take care of existing and very serious problems. She has refused to listen or get input from a Council member who himself was a Gracedale administrator and who helped turn it around.
The impetus for her recent action is definitely the Grand Jury report.
I want her to succeed and I want Gracedale to succeed. I really believe she means well, even if she has a forgivable distaste for bottom-feeding bloggers like me. But I do not blindly agree with every single thing she says or does and will continue to call her out when I think she's wrong, as I did to McClure, Brown and Stoffa.
Bernie, I, of course, appreciate that your name is on all of your commentary, whether I agree or not. But, I do stand by my central thesis that the prerequisites for the step that Exec Zriniski announced last night could not have been accomplished in less than a week, hence it was a work in progress prior to the GJ announcement. We both call balls and strikes as we see them, but I am glad that we agree on the fundamental premise that we want her to succeed, Gracedale to succeed, and the County generally to succeed.
DeleteAnd, besides, didn't she say earlier this year that you were her favorite blogger?
-- Joe Welsh
East Allen Township
She also said in that same missive that she disliked that people went to me, lol. That’s ok. I would be doing a poor job if government officials liked me.
DeleteYes, I think all of this was in the works for some time, but the clear impetus for this proposal now was the grand Jury report. I do not believe she had the “sense of urgency” that she now realizes is necessary.
Nothing new here. she is verbally re-proposing ideas suggested years ago that never came to fruition.
ReplyDeleteIs there any “operation fix license” in the near future? , This is more of her media MO, only this time the pressure, and time frame, to actually remedy the failure is very real and at flash point. She could have used Dave Holland as a resource/advisor early on before the situation went out of control.
It was a critical mistake not to.
She is the absolute worst possible person for Executive- it takes more than screaming in a Bullhorn as a community organizer to run the County. Her past history as a Council member & Controller screamed incompetence!
DeleteWhat is next Taxes going up you vote for these people Northampton..
ReplyDeleteShe'll just not pay the countys portion to the retirees like the last executive did. Saved 16mil last time
DeleteWhat took them so long to make this decision, when it was obvious in 2022 after COVID decimated the staff at Gracedale? The only nurses they could get to work in the past 4 years were agency and so many nurses left Gracedale staff to become agency. It’s been 4 years. Why did Norco leadership not address this years ago? Internal Union pressure? I seriously do not understand.
ReplyDeleteZrinski was asked about that and said the union actually asked her to make this change so that supervisors (who are nonunion) would actually be county employees.
DeleteBecause the last 4 years was under McClure which is why the place is in the mess its in.
DeleteLamont had his flaws but he did a lot of good things and actually saved lives. I won’t forget that ever. Usually an exec is unpopular after two terms. Even John Stoffa
Delete110k a year to start. Plus OT. Not bad for working in a nursing home.
ReplyDeleteAgency Nurses don’t know enough about gracedale to be a supervisor. They follow the money. At that pay maybe staff RNs working in offices will want to be a supervisor.
ReplyDeleteWhat exactly does the DON and her 2 assistants do? No one is qualified. What makes you qualified to be a supervisor? EVERY position in every department needs to be investigated. Job descriptions don’t mean anything. That’s why as staff leave or retire important work falls through the cracks.
ReplyDeleteWhen is enough, enough. This has been going on for many,, many years. Government can’t run crap at any level. Just look at the Pentagon, Medicare, Obamacare, Gracedale. Sell it. You need business people to run these things. Not the government who then gives out government jobs to incompetent people. We also elect them too and suffer. See the Three Stooges and County Executive. Way about her head. Other councils members, wake up and do your job. Don't sit back and get intimidated by Useless Kraft and Tara. They are nobody. Kraft is pathetic as president.
ReplyDeleteThey're all pathetic!
DeleteWhat a mess!
ReplyDeleteTZ is worried about clogs. OMG! Not abuse and neglect and staff sleeping on the job. She is a disaster. The whole place is a mess. The union rep was a lazy housekeeper out for himself. The union reps are there to represent themselves and their own dept.
ReplyDeleteI’m not sure if these figures are coming from Zrinski or BO, but both are democrats so they’re likely math-challenged:
ReplyDelete- Gracedale’s nurses are making approximately $34 per hour.
- The county is paying an agency approximately $31 per hour on top of the nurse’s compensation.
- The resulting cost to the county is approximately $91 per hour for an agency nurse.
It could be that the above is just poorly worded and, if so, it would seem that we need some additional information.
For example, it the county is paying an agency $31 on top of the nurse’s compensation, I have to assume that we’re talking about $31 above the agency nurses’ compensation. If so, that would mean that agency nurses are being paid at $60/hour ($91-$31).
If that’s the case, why are agency nurses going to take a pay cut and accept the $52/hour (Zrinski’s “magic number”)? Is it because the value of the benefits that the agency nurses would receive as Gracedale employees far exceeds the $60 per hour they are currently being paid (plus any employer taxes and benefits that the agency pays)?
We need much more information to make an informed decision. For instance:
- What is the current total compensation package/cost (pay, benefits, employer payroll taxes, etc.) for a Gracedale nurse?
- What is that figure for an agency nurse?
- What do other counties pay for nursing staff?
- Why do private homes seem to be able to run at a profit, while Gracedale (with its annual state subsidy) still requires an ADDITIONAL annual subsidy from the county?
- What is the total compensation package that private homes are spending for nursing staff?
- Do private homes use agency nurses? If so, what do they pay the agencies?
- What other expenses does the county have that exceed what private homes have or that private homes don’t have at all?
It would be insanity to base a decision on Zrinski’s “magic number” without first having the above questions – and MANY others – answered first.
I believe that many agency nursed would take a little less in exchange for the excellent benefits offered by county government. And yes, I do not have to detail them because you should know that they come very close to the salary itself. If the county is paying $52 an hour, it is very likely paying nearly as much in benefits. An excellent pension, holidays, personal time, amazing health care compared to private sector. It is all quite expensive. The county will be paying $91 an hour but the employee will be a county employee. This is a no-brainer.
DeleteThere’s so much wasted money at Gracedale. Examples; why are there 2 ADONs? Why are there so many housekeepers? Why 2 housekeeping supervisors? Why multiple people in offices that don’t warrant it? So many wasting time and money. How closely are accounts payable monitored? How many supplies are wasted due to expiration dates in nursing and dietary? Who monitors expiration dates? What can be cut and where? The spending needs to stop.
Delete.10:07 have no idea who you are but you know what you are talking about
ReplyDeleteTara stepped into a difficult situation but she knew that. It’s hers now.
ReplyDeleteShe did. She said she’s been hit with a “perfect storm’” but it is her problem now and hopefully the Geand Jury report was just the kick in the ass she needed.
DeleteNo such thing- this has been brewing for years! Zrinski's character has always been to do the only politically expedient thing!
DeleteIt is a good thing to have less temp staff, but let me understand this. The supervisors cannot manage now because they are not county employees. They become a county employee and suddenly they will exert command and control over the employees, who are mostly agency employees anyway? I must be a dummy and I hope it works, but it the logic does not make sense. Whether it be temp staff or county staff, a badge isn’t going to change those people’s management ability. Again, I’m probably a dummy. I do Really want it all to work though. Gracedale is worth it.
ReplyDeleteThanks for exposing this travesty!
ReplyDeleteBernie O’Hare said: “I do not have to detail them because you should know that they come very close to the salary itself. If the county is paying $52 an hour, it is very likely paying nearly as much in benefits.”
ReplyDeleteUh, no we don’t know how close they come, nor do we know the answer to any of those other basic questions in the 10:05 am post.
Before we go down a road of offering to increase the pay of ANYONE at Gracedale, we should know the answers, as well as EXACTLY how Zrinski calculated her “magic number.
We also should know what’s going to happen if all the agency nurses don’t accept the offer. Gracedale is already short staffed, so the county has no real leverage to issue ultimatums and force agency nurses into county employment.
Without thinking this through properly, the county could very easily end up in a worse situation than it is now.
Beyond that, Zrinski’s proposal seems certain to increase costs without any real hope of generating more revenue, which will certainly increase taxes. Sadly, that seems to be a recurring theme of Zrinski’s short tenure in office.
It’s about time that TZ rename the County. It seems that it’s now the County of Gracedale. Other departments are struggling terribly. The jail, human services, juvenile detention all have significant vacancies. She’s talking about raising nurse supervisors hourly pay by $20 an hour? DHS casework supervisors start at $53,000 a year, that is roughly $25/hour. Most staff have bachelor’s and masters degrees. There is so much attention being paid to Gracedale. We have significant staff shortages everywhere. Gracedale county does not have competitive or appropriate wages.
ReplyDeleteSo what happens if those agency nurses change their minds about becoming county employees? Possibly will since what nurse in his/her right mind would want to continue to work there (there's so many opportunities elsewhere without the drama).
ReplyDelete