Unions vs. Providers

[NRSKarenRN, BSN, RN]

Nursing's organizing muscle noted. Karen

Healthleaders Magazine:

Apr. 2005

INSIDERS' INSIGHTS

Unions vs. Providers

Depending on which side you ask, the relationship between hospitals and unions has become either more or less combative over the past year. Both sides agree, however, that union organizing tools have become extremely sophisticated and are a definite force to be reckoned with. For example, the use of a "corporate campaign" that targets a hospital's reputation-often by claiming that the organization provides poor quality healthcare or doesn't serve the poor-is fast becoming a tactic of concern to all hospital administrators.

The trend has been toward more conflict. Over the last five years, unions have increasingly used "corporate campaigns" to fuel their recruiting drives. They'll find weaknesses in the relationships of hospitals with key stakeholders and publicize those weaknesses to put pressure on management. Sometimes these campaigns can be based on misinformation, but not necessarily. After all, the campaigns have to have some modicum of truth, or they wouldn't be effective. All hospitals are vulnerable to the corporate campaign, in part because they do have moral obligations to the communities they serve. That makes them easy targets for reputational pressure.