[Miss Mab]

Seriously, I'm not being sarcastic, perhaps a bit dense but:

There's so much dramatic verbiage surrounding the happenings there i.e., taking food from kids mouths, crushing dreams and three years toil in smithereens and as a CNA member myself I ought to be applying a red A to my chest....etc.

Without weighing in too much on how I read what happened there(and it does sound like after three years of working so vociferously it seems a bit shady that most of the actual nurses didn't appear to know about the election even happening until very late in the game and they were then prohibited from discussing it (?) but that's really not my point)

Why can't the SEIU and all the workers who invested all that hard work just reschedule another election date?
Soon.
Because all the work has been done already.
And everybody's there.
And now there's no way to claim secret deals.
No possibility that an RN wouldn't know exactly what they were voting for or against this time or why.

Is there some rule I missed 'cause I really did try to read all of the different threads. I'm being serious, I really don't get it exactly.

And I know it's not 'cause the unions can't handle the additional time or work involved. I mean, say what you will about CNA, but damn they are one busy group of nurses.
In the last few days, they were involved in this Ohio thing, got a local county hospital here to withdraw their own strike call and keep negotiating, ratified a pretty nifty new contract for thousands of UC nurses while also continuing to execute the final plans for the 10 day Sutter strike that starts this weekend.

I don't like some of what they do with my $$, either, but I 'll sure never accuse 'em of being lazy....

I honestly wish the best for those in Ohio

[Organize1199]

Dear Miss Mab,

Your organizers came here in huge numbers, three years into the campaign - on the week of the election - to destroy it. They lied to workers, sent awful, hateful mail to nurses and other employees; they called people at home, snuck into the hospital to lie about SEIU and the agreement, and called into the hospital to lie and lie and lie.

Healing the wounds your people caused will take time. Perhaps you can't imagine the courage it takes to go through a three year long campaign, afraid, but pressing on. But - then again maybe you can. Can you imagine how folks can become afraid & confused when rabid anti-union "union organizers" mount a vicious, terrifying campaign to stop you from organizing?

If we had another election tomorrow, your union-busting California organizers will come here again and bust the union again and again. What's to stop them? They are bragging about it at the top of their website with a VICTORY flyer. A union, claiming VICTORY that 8000 workers were denied a union! It's the most disgusting thing I have ever seen from a so-called union. The CNA had nothing to do with employees of CHP for a three year campaign. They have never organized a single worker in the state.

What I beg you to do, as a CNA member, is ask yourself this. Your union dues are paying for union busting. If you think that's right, sister, you got it. Go get your red A. But please, if not, you have got to hold your leadership accountable.

IN SOLIDARITY

[RN Power Ohio]

What's not to get...With a rushed back door election these are the kinds of things SEIU will do! No wonder the Ohio Hospital Association (which spends millions on union avoidance) praises the deal between SEIU and CHP

http://www.sfweekly.com/2004-06-30/n...ers-in-slime/3

I am proud to be part of an organization that actually fights for patient rights and NOT corporate rights. NNOC is not selling it's soul but rather spread the soul and spirit of true health care reform and patient safey.

[micurn55]

Miss Mab I agree with you that CNA is not lazy. Much rather have their energy focussed on organizing non-union RNs out by you in California then busting up union elections. Check out this blog from someone who's relative is a CHP nurse:

CNA is lying. This union must be stopped, Open Left (Blog), by: adamterando, March 18, 2008


http://openleft.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=4590

[Organize1199]

"RN Power",

You are so off base I don't know what to tell you. This is Ohio. We are real people and we sure don't need your San Francisco newspaper to tell us what you did. SEIU/District 1199 has been organizing health care workers in Ohio, West Virginia and Kentucky since the 1970s.

You drove down from your Cleveland law firm to stop hospital workers from organizing a union. You betrayed 8,000 Ohio families. Have you no sense of decency, of right and wrong? Can you even distinguish the truth from the lies you've been repeating?

Oh, sister. You really missed the mark. Please, just take the time to listen to what CHP workers and their families have to say.

Here's a youtube video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=INPOiFNQQBY

Here is a reaction to the situation, posted by a worker's family member:

http://www.mydd.com/story/2008/3/17/0351/48699

Here's a letter from CHP employees, posted to Allnurses:

http://allnurses.com/forums/f323/cna...er-288194.html

[RN Power Ohio]

The bigger picture might help:

http://www.lawmemo.com/nlrb/joint_petitions.htm

Notice that 1. no evidence of support is necessary and 2. NLRA Section 8 2 a and b cannot be invoked. I believe these are the protections against company unions. They were instated in 1935 for a reason.

Sounds like the NLRA (in good timing for the CHP situ) would like to reimpose company unions on workers.

Look carefully at the date of proposal and compare to SEIU CHP timeline.

Respectfully,

RN Power Ohio

[RN Power Ohio]

Yes, the video is compelling. It does show that a small minority of the 8,000 workers actually supported SEIU. These are the very few people who were involved in the selection of SEIU.

They should keep organizing, gain support and file for an up front election.

[RN Power Ohio]

You are so off base I don't know what to tell you. This is Ohio. We are real people and we sure don't need your San Francisco newspaper to tell us what you did.

Clearly, you didn't read the article..it actually is about what SEIU did.

[Organize1199]

I'm afraid you're talking lawyer again. Back to work at your law office? Please. We had a secret ballot elections scheduled, one for each unit of each hospital. Get real.

If you thought the workers you saw on their video didn't have the support to win the elections, why on earth did you feel the need to come down here in 20 inches of snow and harass, intimidate and confuse everyone?Why did you dress up as fake pizza delivery people and sneak into the hospitals to spread your incredible lies? Why did you call into workers' departments and into their houses? Why did you send out thousands of color glossy flyers packed with insults, lies and the oft-repeated anti-union "VOTE NO"?

Why does your website CONGRATULATE 8,000 workers on not getting the union?

We expect this kind of thing from management. And, I guess I don't know what to expect from the kind of nurse who works at a law firm in Cleveland and busts the union in her spare time.

But I implore CNA members - real union women and real union men who are watching this unfold: LOOK at the unthinkable thing that your leaders did to 8,000 Ohio families and HOLD THEM ACCOUNTABLE. This is your union dues money, busting the union in Ohio. Watch the video, and read workers' accounts of what they spent your dues to do. This has to stop.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=INPOiFNQQBY

IN SOLIDARITY

[RN Power Ohio]

An article from an Ohio RN.

http://www.springfieldnewssun.com/o/...urnnurses.html