Well, it’s finally happened. After months of denying that it was engaging in unlawful union busting, the management of Huntington Memorial Hospital (HMH) has itself been busted by the Los Angeles office of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).

According to local civil rights attorney Dale Gronemeier, the NLRB has recently issued four preliminary determinations that there is probable cause (i.e., strong evidence) that HMH management has engaged in unfair and illegal labor practices in an attempt to prevent their registered nurses (RNs) from forming a union affiliated with the California Nurses Association (CNA).   

The NLRB has “found merit and authorized complaint” against HMH management on the following allegations: (1) interrogating RNs about their union activity, (2) creating the impression of surveillance (which, in turn, creates an atmosphere of fear and intimidation) by supervisors and hospital management of RNs’ union activity (3) disparately enforcing the off-duty access policy, and (4) making coercive statements, in response to union activity, that in patient care areas employees may only talk about patients.  

Such illegal tactics have no place in a Western democracy where the right to form, join or assist a labor union is protected by federal law. According to the CNA, Huntington management has even gone so far as to hire a notorious union-busting firm Littler-Mendelson to misinform and intimidate RNs.  Management has hired this bullying outfit to the tune of $850 per hour, a huge fee that would be much better spent on patient care. The RNs are rightfully demanding that management fire Littler-Mendelson and redirect their fee to providing better health care at the hospital.

That there is plenty of room for improvement in patient care at HMH is apparently quite clear. According to a recent Los Angeles Times report, HMH has earned a dismal “C” grade for the last three years when it comes to preventing infections and medical errors, and its numerical grade was below the average score for LA County hospitals. Under the leadership of President and CEO Stephen Ralph, HMH’s decline into mediocrity (or worse) has coincided with Mr. Ralph’s corporate management style and his fondness for union-busting.  

The RNs fervently want and hope to restore patient care to the high standards that used to exist at HMH, and this is the main reason they are trying to form a union.  

Regarding the relationship between unionized RNs and hospital quality, the same LA Times article also reported that “Healthcare giant Kaiser Permanente consistently posts some of the highest scores and shows little variation across its 35 hospitals in California.” Guess what? Nearly 100 percent of the RNs in Kaiser hospitals are represented by a union. Clearly, unionized RNs are strongly linked to producing excellent hospitals. HMH management needs to recognize this fact and act accordingly. 

The recent findings by the NLRB about HMH management’s illegal and unfair practices also vindicate what pro-union RNs at the hospital have been saying for months now. They deserve a lot of credit for having the courage to speak truth to power and now the NLRB has found merit in their evidence and testimony.     

Of course, HMH management claims it is innocent and “does not believe it has violated the National Labor Relations Act,” public relations and media manager Derek Clark told the Pasadena Star-News. That a health care organization which claims to be nonprofit feels the need to spend money paying such a “spin doctor” is unfortunate.   

Mr. Clark’s veracity is especially called into question by his recent statement to the Star-News that “The possible issuance of a complaint does not mean there has been any finding of wrong-doing.” An NLRB complaint has clearly been issued and it’s not just a possibility. And the fact that the NLRB has issued such a complaint means that it has indeed found strong evidence of wrongdoing by hospital management.  With all due respect, Mr. Clark should not attempt to spin this any other way.

In one fashion or another, four of the eight members of the Pasadena City Council have now expressed support for the efforts by the RNs at HMH to form a union. They include Council members Terry Tornek, Victor Gordo, Jacque Robinson and John Kennedy. Bravo to these four.   

Now it’s time for Mayor Bill Bogaard and the other three members of the council — Steve Madison, Margaret McAustin and Gene Masuda — to also get on board. The RNs at HMH deserve their strong support.

Source: http://www.pasadenaweekly.com/cms/story/detail/busted/14140/