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BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) – Another group of nurses at St. Charles Health System filed a petition Wednesday to join the Oregon Nurses Association.
The election covers about 40 home health and hospice nurses in Bend, Redmond, Prineville, Madras and surrounding areas, an ONA representative said.
The association said that because of their work duties, they are not part of the hospital nurses, who are assigned as their own bargaining unit by asking people at their homes. ONA represents 1,100 nurses in St. Charles Bend, Redmond and Prineville.
Here is an ONA news release and a statement from St. Charles Health System:
Home Health and Hospice Nurses File Union Representation in St. Charles (Photo)
Oregon Nurses Assn. – 10/05/22 3:18 PM
Bend, Ore. – Today, home health and hospice nurses at St. Charles Health System in Bend filed a union election to join the Oregon Nurses Association (ONA) on October 5, 2022. After the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) voluntarily derecognized dozens of nurses’ union license cards for the St. Charles administration. The NLRB will set a date for the nurses union election in the next few weeks.
“We are disappointed that St. Charles has refused to recognize our association, but we are deeply committed to building a workplace where we can provide quality patient care with the appropriate support and tools to ensure everyone’s safety,” said Karin Arthur, RN. “Unfortunately, we’ve seen St. Charles go against his stated values time and time again. We are forming an association to better serve our patients and protect ourselves.
Frontline nurses know what their patients need and want input in decision making. By forming a union, home health and hospice nurses will receive fair treatment, due process, and adequate compensation, and local patients will have access to high-quality, accessible health care.
“St. Charles has experienced a lot of management instability and changes in priorities have caused many highly qualified employees to leave the system. We don’t have the resources to adequately serve our patients, but we are expected to maintain the same high level of care. It’s not fair to our patients or our healthcare providers,” said Cherie Iannucchi, RN.
If the majority of home health and hospice nurses vote to join ONN in a union election, they will elect a local nurse leadership team, establish bylaws and begin contract negotiations with St. Charles Health System executives.
ONA already represents hospital nurses in St. Charles Bend, Prineville and Redmond. The nurses’ contract in Bend expires at the end of the year and they are already preparing for negotiations. In June, nearly 300 physicians, nurse practitioners and physician assistants announced their intention to form a union.
Oregon Nurses Association (ONA) It is the state’s largest nursing organization. We are a professional association and labor union representing more than 15,000 nurses and allied health workers across the state, including nearly 1,200 front-line nurses who work in St. Charles health facilities. We are a proud state partner of AFT and the American Nurses Association. ONA’s mission is to support nursing, quality health care and healthy communities. For more information visit: www.OregonRN.org.
St. Charles Declaration and Petition Notice:
Today, the Oregon Nurses Association filed a petition with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to request a secret ballot union election. This election will determine whether the majority of St. Charles Home Health, Hospice and Transitions Navigator Registered Nurses want to be represented by this union as a new separate bargaining unit.
We respect the right of our employees, including our nurses, to freely choose whether they want to be represented by a union. We also comply with National Labor Relations Board procedures that allow our employees the opportunity to participate in a secret ballot election before the NLRB reviews a proposed bargaining unit. We refused to recognize a new bargaining unit without a secret ballot as ONA requested Tuesday night to ensure our nurses can exercise their full rights under the law to represent.
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