Supreme court ruling

[natalie]

http://www.modernhealthcare.com/news_briefs.php3?action=view&id=1724

Supreme Court rules on nurses’ supervisory status

The U.S. Supreme Court today ruled 5-4 that federal law prohibits anyone who oversees other employees from joining unions. The case involves Kentucky River Community Care, a psychiatric-care provider in Pippa Passes, Ky., that the National Labor Relations Board ordered to negotiate with a union formed by nurses.

In 1999, Kentucky River appealed the NLRB order to the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, arguing that the nurses were ineligible to unionize because they had supervisory duties. The 6th Circuit agreed with Kentucky River that the nurses’ duties did, in fact, make them supervisors.

The NLRB subsequently appealed to the Supreme Court, which upheld the 6th Circuit’s ruling. NLRB officials could not be reached for comment before deadline, and the American Nurses Association did not immediately return calls.

The NLRB had argued that nurses aren’t supervisors simply because they use ordinary professional or technical judgment to direct less-skilled workers. All nine justices agreed that employers must demonstrate that employees are supervisors, but they split on the issue of whether the NLRB had misinterpreted labor law. [5/29/01]

[fiestynurse]

OH, THAT's JUST GREAT!! This precedence is going to open up a whole new set of arguments for those union busting employers.

[Christina Terranova RN]

Greetings

Here is a link to the actual decision/ opinion of the Court in this case.

http://laws.findlaw.com/us/000/99-1815.html

[-jt]

I dont know how they came to this conclusion. what happened to the part about supervisors having the authority to independently hire & fire? Which of those staff nurses - RNs and LPNs - could do that in that place?

ok so now what?

[OC_An Khe]

Contact all our legislators on the federal level to have this injustice corrected. It's a good thing that Sen. Jeffords did what he did. At least the continued shift to the right on the judiciary can be slowed.

The way I understand the decision it still up to the employer to prove that the nurses are supervisors in individual cases. Not that thios is good mind youi but it is something.