Supreme Court ruling fallout.

Nurses General Nursing

Published

It's started already.

http://starbulletin.com/2001/06/05/news/story11.html

The National Labor Relations Board on Friday impounded all ballots cast by 45 employees of Maui Medical Group. The employees had voted whether to have union representation by the Hawaii Nurses Association.

The employer challenged all ballots of the registered nurses, licensed practical nurses and medical assistants, alleging that 37 of the positions are supervisory and thus not eligible to be represented by the union, said Tom Cestare of the NLRB.

However, Cestare said the board's "regional director had made the decision they were employees, not supervisors" at an election hearing on May 2.

Maui Medical Group filed a motion challenging the election at 3 p.m. the day before the election was held. The labor board decided it was too late to stop the election and impounded the ballots after the vote.

Perry Confalone, an attorney representing Maui Medical Group, said the challenge was made in light of a U.S. Supreme Court decision on May 29 changing the way labor officials should determine supervisory status.

Nancy McGuckin, executive director of the HNA, said 34 of 45 positions are not supervisory.

"I think they're using a new Supreme Court decision to try to thwart an election at their facility," McGuckin said.

She said that during a hearing of the Maui Medical Group on May 2, the regional director of the board had argued there were just four supervisors.

"I think it's a ploy and a tactic to not let them have a fair election," McGuckin said.

McGuckin said the issue of whether registered nurses act in supervisory roles has been a long-standing issue in this country.

Cestare said the issue is complicated because nurses give orders, which may be equated to a supervisory role. He said if the board rules any ballots ineligible, they can be removed, and there is no need for a repeat vote.

The labor board's regional San Francisco director will rule on the employer's motion challenging the votes and whether to reopen the hearing records.

Specializes in ORTHOPAEDICS-CERTIFIED SINCE 89.

Once again a stumbling block, but if we keep at a steady pace we shall prevail for the rights that we deserve.

Would that ruling be applied to other fields, I think not. I wonder in the next auto workers strike, or newspaper strike or teamsters' strike will everyone who has ever said "do this or do that" be prevented from belonging to a bargaining unit? This seems designed to apply specifically to Nurses.

P

Hi. I've not studied this issue much, but I'm considered an employee by my employer, for all intents and purposes, and not a supervisor right now. Some of my duties include doing aide "supervisories" on my patients. But, I don't attend management meetings, I don't get invited to them, and I'm only privy to the information that management wants to give me which is not alot. Therefore, as an employee, I should have the right to organize. Physicians have been talking about organizing. Are they considered supervisors?

Specializes in CV-ICU.

Whatever happened to the belief that nurses acted in the interest of the patient first; then the employers? Did that go out of vogue with all of the mergers and aquisititions of big business health care? What effect will this have on all of the unions aand collective bargaining associations that are currently in place? It is getting to the point that it just doesn't seem to be worth it anymore to be a nurse! :mad:

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