Law judge rules North Memorial violated labor law, orders hospital to reinstate fired worker

September 8, 2015 by

NLRBNorth Memorial Medical Center illegally fired one worker and unlawfully attempted to block others from participating in a campaign to fight staffing cuts and protect patient safety at the Robbinsdale hospital, an administrative law judge ruled Friday.

Acting on behalf of the National Labor Relations Board, Judge Christine Dibble upheld charges of unfair labor practices filed by two unions, the Minnesota Nurses Association and SEIU Healthcare Minnesota, and she ordered North Memorial to reinstate Melvin Anderson, an SEIU member fired after joining informational picketing outside the hospital in June 2014, with back pay.

“By giving him his job back and paying back pay for the time they took from him, this ruling shows that workers can stand up for what is right for patients and workers and not have to fear for their job,” SEIU Healthcare Minnesota President Jamie Gulley said. “Melvin, and all of the members of SEIU and MNA who continue to stand up for patient safety, should take pride that this ruling only reinforces their fight.”

Members of the two unions staged informational picketing June 26, 2014, after hospital management moved unilaterally to cut staffing among nurses, dietary aides, housekeepers and other support workers. The cuts, workers said, made it more difficult for them to provide the quality of care North Memorial’s patients deserve.

Union nurses and health care workers picketed outside North Memorial June 26.

Union nurses and health care workers picketed outside North Memorial June 26.

Management took action to block union organizers and officers from talking with members in the days before informational picketing, calling security guards to escort two union representatives off the property and forcing an off-duty nurse to change out of a union t-shirt.

Those actions, Dibble ruled, amount to an unlawful infringement on workers’ right to engage in “protected, concerted activity” regarding the terms and conditions of their employment, as enshrined in the National Labor Relations Act.

“We are pleased that the Board has vindicated our rights to represent our union and recognized the injustice of the employer’s attempt to harass and intimidate legitimate union activity,” MNA representative Joe McMahon said.

Specifically, the ruling confirmed that workers are entitled to have conversations with union staff or stewards in public areas – like a hospital’s cafeteria – free from intimidation or surveillance. Employers may not deny union representatives access to their property unless they are being disruptive, and employers may not prohibit union members or representatives from displaying union logos.

In addition to reinstating Anderson with back pay, the ruling requires North Memorial to post on its bulletin boards that it has committed the unfair labor practices and will halt them immediately.

North Memorial may file an exception to Dibble’s ruling. If no timely exception is filed, her findings become the NLRB’s official decision.

Read the full ruling here.

Read the Union Advocate’s report on the safe staffing campaign at North Memorial.

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NLRB: North Memorial responded to staffing campaign with harassment, retaliation

October 30, 2014 by
Union nurses and health care workers picketed outside North Memorial June 26.

Union nurses and health care workers picketed outside North Memorial June 26.

North Memorial Hospital illegally retaliated against union nurses and health care workers who participated in a campaign to fight staffing cuts and protect patient safety at the Robbinsdale hospital, according to a complaint issued this week by the Minneapolis-based Regional Director of the National Labor Relations Board.

The complaint finds merit to charges of unfair labor practices filed by two unions working together on the staffing campaign at North Memorial, the Minnesota Nurses Association and SEIU Healthcare Minnesota. A press release issued jointly today detailed the unions’ charges.

MNA and SEIU Healthcare Minnesota filed charges with the NLRB after the hospital fired one employee, revoked work agreements and forced employees to work weekends, “repeatedly interrogated” staff about their union activities, warned employees and union staff that talking about unions was prohibited and threatened to file charges if discussions continued – all because they participated in the June picketing.

Members of the two unions staged informational picketing June 26 after hospital management moved unilaterally to cut staffing among nurses, dietary aides, housekeepers and other support workers. The cuts, workers said, made it more difficult for them to provide the quality of care North Memorial’s patients deserve.

Melvin Anderson, an SEIU member who took part in informational picketing, was fired from his position in the sterile processing unit at North Memorial – “a move alleged to be illegal by the NLRB,” according to the unions.

“Despite the challenges that North Memorial’s retaliation has caused for me, I don’t regret for one second that I spoke up for safe staffing levels and patient safety,” Anderson said. “I hope this ruling makes North Memorial understand that they can’t intimidate employees and that it is time to finally address their staffing levels. My co-workers are telling me that recent cuts in staff are putting their safety and patient safety at risk.”

The NLRB will hold a hearing on the case in January. If the board agrees that North Memorial committed unfair labor practices, it could order the hospital to compensate workers who were the target of harassment or retaliation, like Anderson.

Presidents from MNA and SEIU Healthcare Minnesota also commented on the complaint against North Memorial. MNA President Linda Hamilton:

North Memorial management’s actions were outrageous. Hospital staff were exercising their legal rights to a peaceful event to protest staffing plans that could endanger patient safety. The hospital should have used its energy to create safe staffing levels that ensure patient safety and allowed nurses to perform quality work.

SEIU Healthcare Minnesota President Jamie Gulley:

SEIU Healthcare Minnesota members bravely raised their voices to address staffing levels at North Memorial in June, but instead of listening to their front line staff, North Memorial decided instead to retaliate against and even fire workers who took part in the informational picket. The ruling Tuesday from the NLRB recognized this for what it is: harassment and intimidation. As staffing levels continue to decline, posing increased risks to patients, North Memorial must stop retaliating against employees and should instead focus on making certain their hospital has safe staffing levels as they care for our families.

View The Union Advocate’s coverage of the June 26 informational picketing in Robbinsdale.

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Nurses, support workers unite for safe staffing at North Memorial Hospital

June 24, 2014 by
web.MNA-group

North Memorial nurses and support staff join informational picketing outside the hospital, warning of unsafe cuts to staffing pushed by management.

ROBBINSDALE – Rankled by North Memorial Hospital’s plan to cut their staffing levels, nurses and support staff united for informational picketing outside the facility here today.

Hospital management, union leaders say, has moved unilaterally to cut staffing among nurses, dietary aides, housekeepers and other support workers to dangerously low levels. Nurses, for example, are now expected to spend 11 minutes per visit with a patient, down from the previous standard of 20 minutes, Minnesota Nurses Association President Linda Hamilton said.

“Patients need a whole lot more time than that,” Hamilton said. “But unfortunately, North Memorial has decided to put profits before patients.”

Jamie Gulley, president of SEIU Healthcare Minnesota, said support workers, like registered nurses, see the impact of cuts to staffing – and the threat they pose to patient care.

“Members of SEIU and MNA have joined together to shine a spotlight on corporatization of health care at North memorial,” Gulley said. “It’s unconscionable for this hospital to prevent us from giving the care we want to give and that patients deserve.”

North Memorial nurses said they already had seen impacts of the cuts.

“Just having eyes on our patients – sometimes it’s the difference between noticing changes, or that something’s not right,” RN Christine Raatikka said. “It’s very stressful.”

“We are out picketing today because the plan proposed by North Memorial to cut staffing levels is dangerous and could put patients lives at risk if implemented,” Jennifer Kappel, a nursing assistant at North Memorial and SEIU member, added. “We work hard and care deeply about our patients, and will continue fighting these cuts to protect their safety.”
Presidents Linda Hamilton (MNA), Jamie Gulley (SEIU Healthcare MN) and Bobby Kasper (St. Paul Regional Labor Federat-ion) walked the picket line together.

Presidents Linda Hamilton (MNA), Jamie Gulley (SEIU Healthcare MN) and Bobby Kasper (St. Paul Regional Labor Federat-ion) walked the picket line together.

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UPDATE: Health care workers reach agreement with Twin Cities hospitals

May 16, 2012 by

Ninety-one percent of SEIU members voted to authorize a strike at Twin Cities hospitals. (SEIU Minnesota photo)

SEIU Healthcare Minnesota, the union representing 3,500 health care workers at eight Twin Cities hospitals, announced today it has reached a tentative agreement with management, averting a strike authorized by members earlier this week.

The union said it would withhold details of the proposed contract until union members had reviewed and voted on it. Voting is scheduled for next week.

Tee McClenty, SEIU’s chief negotiator in contract talks with the hospitals, issued the following statement:

While we did not achieve all that our members deserve for the work we do every day to improve our patient’s lives, by standing together we fought back the most outrageous cuts that would have driven the lowest-paid workers in our hospitals into poverty. We will keep organizing and fighting the corporations that want to run our non-profit hospitals like for-profit institutions.

The union resumed negotiations with the eight hospitals Wednesday, armed with the support of an overwhelming majority of its members, who voted May 14 and 15 to authorize their leadership to call a two- to five-day strike if talks did not progress.

Hospitals involved in the negotiations include Fairview Southdale Hospital in Edina, Fairview Riverside Hospital in Minneapolis, Children’s Hospitals in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Health East’s Bethesda Hospital in St. Paul and St. John’s Hospital in Maplewood, North Memorial Hospital in Robbinsdale, and Park Nicollet/Methodist Hospital in St. Louis Park.

Workers in negotiations include nursing assistants, emergency room technicians, maintenance and food service personnel, clerks, warehouse staff and others.

Negotiations between the two sides  broken down, the union said, as a result of the hospitals’ demands for changes in the workday, overtime provisions, vacation and sick-leave. The hospitals also sought large increases in the contribution employees make toward their health insurance coverage. The proposed changes, SEIU Healthcare Minnesota said, would have pushed many of the lowest-paid workers at Twin Cities hospitals – and their families – into poverty.

The hospitals’ insistence on squeezing givebacks out of its lowest-paid employees  angered many workers – as indicated by the strike vote, which drew support from 91 percent of voting members.

“Three years ago when the hospitals were struggling, we agreed to wage freezes so we could all focus on providing the best care possible for our patients,” said Joscelyn Barnes, a bargaining team member and Nursing Assistant at Fairview Southdale Hospital.

“Yet now, when the hospital and CEOs are earning record-breaking profits, the hospital workers that spend each day and night caring for patients are being asked to survive on even less.”

The current hospital contracts expired Feb. 29 and have been extended three times while negotiations continued.

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