Nurses Challenging Forced Unionization Deal by Union Organizers and Company Management

Union organizers’ intimidation sways outcome of unionization election

Massillon, OH (September 10, 2012) – Two local Affinity Medical Center nurses are seeking to overturn a union certification election after experiencing union intimidation that tainted the results.

With free legal assistance from the National Right to Work Foundation, Affinity nurses Susan Kelley and Cinda Keener filed with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) a motion to intervene in the election proceedings in their workplace.

National Nurses Organizing Committee (NNOC) union organizers and Affinity Medical Center management entered into a "neutrality agreement" that gave union organizers preferential access to the facility helping them to impose monopoly bargaining on the nurses. Company and union officials refuse to disclose the terms of the secret agreement despite requests from the nurses

Additionally, non-employee union organizers stalked, reported on, and attempted to get company management to retaliate against nurses who exercised their rights to oppose the unionization of their workplace.

Although the exact terms of this secret deal are unknown, neutrality agreements between union and company officials often grant union organizers wide-ranging access to employee break rooms, lounges, and other company facilities in exchange for contract concessions or to prevent union-boss instigated protests against the company. Moreover, company supervisors are often gagged from discussing unionization with concerned employees.

The two nurses point out that the secret deal between Affinity and NNOC union officials, combined with the intimidation of nurses who spoke out against unionization, likely affected the outcome of the union organizing vote. Witnesses report that the NNOC union was granted monopoly bargaining powers over the workers by a single vote.

"Caught between union bosses and corporate executives, these nurses have been stripped of their rights to oppose forced unionism in their workplace," said Mark Mix, president of the National Right to Work Foundation. "Medical professionals shouldn't be subjected to backroom deals that give union operatives preferential treatment at the expense of employees' workplace rights."

"Upholding this process would make a sham out of federal labor law, which is supposed to protect workers," added Mix. "The NLRB should give these nurses a say in what is going on in their workplace."