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Discussion

Please advise me.

When I was a tech in the hospital I work at currently, the nurses were voting to keep the union or not. They voted to keep it. Now years later I looked into how to do that vote. I would need 30% of all nurses to sign to put a vote against the union. So I asked about 25 nurses and only 2 wanted to sign after they had their questions answered. Some had strong feelings to keep the union and said they'd quit working here if the union was voted out. I concluded I wouldn't get 30% and I gave up asking. I did ask where all our union money goes to and was told by a union rep I could not get that information.
 

a week after I stopped asking and talking about the union, I was confronted by a union rep. I was told that she would push to have me be expelled from the union, and therefore fired from my job since to work here you have to be a union member. I was told I violated the unions constitution by being anti union. She said they've done it before to another nurse and that nurse begged them to help her get her job back and that they did.

regardless of your feelings on unions, I hadn't meant any violation. I just didn't want to pay the 2k dues every year and wondered if anyone else was the same. We have other hospitals in our system that aren't union and they're paid more than us and don't seem to have issues so I just wanted to see. 

but now I'm in fear of being fired. What can I do? The union rep pushed me to talk to the union to president but I'm afraid to now. I guess I thought more people wouldn't want the union. but didn't expect I could be fired from my job for asking. 
what should I do? Please

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    • Featured Replies

    If you are working for a public hospital, you can't be forced to pay union dues since 2018 (Jorifice v AFSCME)

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    • Author
    FiremedicMike said:

    If you are working for a public hospital, you can't be forced to pay union dues since 2018 (Jorifice v AFSCME)

    It is private, not for profit 

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    disneygrl said:

    It is private, not for profit 

    Then you probably shouldn't have been trying to bust the union <shrug>

     

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    • Author
    FiremedicMike said:

    Then you probably shouldn't have been trying to bust the union <shrug>

     

    A vote was put in the past as I said. Nurses have a right to vote for or against a union don't they? At least I thought they did.

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    What state are you in?

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    disneygrl said:

    A vote was put in the past as I said. Nurses have a right to vote for or against a union don't they? At least I thought they did.

    Going into a union shop and running around asking all the nurses if they'd be willing to vote out the union is generally a terrible idea.  

    The only way to do this is if you have serious muscle behind you, I.e. you are an admin plant or have butload of cash to support your cause.

    Random tech on med-surg 3 trying to convince all the nurses to vote out the union?  Terrible idea.

     

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    • Author
    FiremedicMike said:

    Going into a union shop and running around asking all the nurses if they'd be willing to vote out the union is generally a terrible idea.  

    The only way to do this is if you have serious muscle behind you, I.e. you are an admin plant or have butload of cash to support your cause.

    Random tech on med-surg 3 trying to convince all the nurses to vote out the union?  Terrible idea.

     

    I'm a nurse. Not a tech. I had been a tech when the union was voted against in the past, I wanted to see why not do it again with new nurses at the hospital now. Clearly, I know it's a bad idea, I was asking for advice since they threatened my job.

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    disneygrl said:

    I'm a nurse. Not a tech. I had been a tech when the union was voted against in the past, I wanted to see why not do it again with new nurses at the hospital now. Clearly, I know it's a bad idea, I was asking for advice since they threatened my job.

    There's probably not much you can do to be honest.. It's their right to vote to kick you out of the union, and if that's truly a condition of employment, you're probably toast.

     

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    You definitely made a mistake ruffling up the union. If there are other non-union hospitals you might want to apply and see how it is working on the other side. 

    You may realize unions aren't a bad thing. 

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    It sounds like you took action without understanding how your efforts might be interpreted by the union. Now you understand. That's a mistake you likely won't repeat in the future.  

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    • Author
    lifelearningrn said:

    You definitely made a mistake ruffling up the union. If there are other non-union hospitals you might want to apply and see how it is working on the other side. 

    You may realize unions aren't a bad thing. 

    So there are pros and cons to the union. I am actually a part of a team that floats to other hospitals in our system, which are non union. My "home" hospital is union though. The nurses are pretty happy at the non union hospitals. I didn't do this on a whim. But thanks for your input. I kind of was looking for advice about what to do NEXT, like any recourse for union expulsion. Thanks.

    also, the union rep threatening me is really not strengthening my love of the union. Asking questions shouldn't be grounds for expulsion. Asking other nurses if they want to stay in or vote the union out should also not be grounds of expulsion. I got my answers, and left the matter alone. We all pay dues, we are all members, we should be allowed to discuss benefits and things about the union we aren't happy with, and whether we want to stay in a union, without repercussions.

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    Don't know how to avoid expulsion, but how about working with the union to get what you want?

    I understand that if it is a big union representing many facilities it is hard, but who is your rep? Have to talked to him/her about what would make your facility better?

    I was "lucky" that at the facility I wanted to work at, the nurses had organized their own union, independent from big state or national unions and was very responsive to members.
    Of course the union had a lot to do with why I loved working there.

    Good luck.

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