50 Tarzana Crothall Workers Chose SEIU, 650 SEIU-UHW Members at 3 facilities say "goodbye" to NUHW, and National News Coverage of $1.5 million judgment against Rosselli and NUHW
Tarzana Workers Chose SEIU
Tarzana EVS workers voted YES to join Service Workers United (SWU), an SEIU affiliate, over NUHW. With SWU, SEIU 121RN and SEIU-UHW members under one roof, SEIU now has hospital-wide strength to win better pay, benefits, staffing and to ensure respect for the work that we do. As SWU's newest members begin negotiations for their first contract, they have the backing of the entire SEIU family, over 700,000 California members to win!
"I am very happy for our victory. At last we are going to have better benefits, wages, and more importantly, respect. No more 'Warnings' for getting sick," said Berta Gutierrez, EVS
In Other Facilities, NUHW Simply Gives Up
NUHW forfeited their campaign to grab 50 SEIU-UHW members at the Avalon Chowchilla nursing home. Despite the fact that NUHW had filed a petition seeking an election there more than a year ago, workers were almost unanimously ready to vote to reaffirm SEIU-UHW and reject NUHW. NUHW knew they were facing a loss, so they refused to sign an election agreement. After four months of NUHW delays, the NLRB finally figured out that NUHW didn't really want to have the election and dismissed their decert petition.
"We're all glad the labor board dismissed the election, we stood strong and did it, now we can focus all our efforts on making our work better for ourselves and the residents we take care of," Sherrie Richmond, CNA
NLRB Tells NUHW No Way at IHHI Hospitals
On Friday, The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) dismissed decertification petitions covering 600 workers at IHHI hospitals Coastal Communities and Western Med Anaheim. The decertification petitions had been nothing more than an NUHW publicity stunt as the workers were clearly covered under a contract and there was no legal window to file for decertification.
In the NLRB hearing to review the matter, NUHW official Barbara Lewis tried to argue that she left the contracts open, without telling workers. This effort to put the interests of union officials above workers is nothing new for Lewis, who was revealed in the recent Federal trial to have been the author of an elaborate plan to make SEIU-UHW "ungovernable" after the trusteeship. The jury unanimously found her liable for damages after evidence showed her, Sal Rosselli, and the other defendants diverting the resources of SEIU-UHW for their own interests.
"I can't believe NUHW would actually try and ask us to vote for them after what they did to us. They should be glad the NLRB saved them from the embarrassment of an election here!" - Joanna Powers, LVN, Western Medical Center
More Victories To Come
Dozens of elections are set to occur in April and May in which workers will chose SEIU-UHW over NUHW. Last week, NUHW conceded defeat and withdrew from the contests to represent 170 workers at Oakridge and San Marcos nursing homes. This brings to 870 the number of workers whom NUHW has failed to win representation for in April. 1,300 more workers are prepared to join them on April 20-22 at elections scheduled at St. Francis Hospital in Lynwood, the Pradap Poddatoori nursing home chain in the East Bay and Prison Health Services in Oakland/Dublin.
Extra, Extra - Read all about it - Jury Slaps $1.5 Million Hurtin' on NUHW
The nation took note of our legal and moral victory over NUHW last week, and the story was covered in many of the countries major newspapers. You can read the stories here:
http://www.seiu-uhw.org/2010/04/news-coverage-of-the-nuhw-verdict.html