Registered nurses will hold a press conference Monday at Pasadena City Hall as a send-off for RN, Allysha Almada, who has been invited by President Obama to participate in the White House Summit on Worker Voice in Washington D.C. on Oct. 7.

At the send-off Councilmember Victor Gordo will present Almada with a "Courage Award" in recognition of her bravery in continuing to speak out for safe patient care and the right to organize a union at Huntington Memorial Hospital. Almada, who worked in the Critical Care Unit for nearly five years, was terminated in retaliation for her advocacy.

In Washington DC Almada will speak at two press conferences on Tuesday, Oct. 6; a press briefing with AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka and later in the day, a press conference on Capitol Hill with Sen. Bernie Sanders announcing introduction of the Workplace Democracy Act, legislation that would help restore workers' rights to bargain for better wages, benefits and working conditions.

What:   Press Conference Send-off for RN, Allysha Almada, Headed to White House for Nat'l Summit on Worker Voice.
When:  Monday, Oct. 5, 2015, 9:30 a.m.
Where: Pasadena City Hall, 100 Garfield Ave., Pasadena, Ca.  

"Nurses at Huntington have been fighting for years to have a voice at our hospital, but now we have a listening ear with the President of the United States and the Secretary of Labor," said Almada. "I'm thrilled to go to our nation's capital to share how we are organizing to strengthen our collective voice, to hold management accountable for addressing issues that impact patient safety, like under staffing. I look forward to meeting with workers around the country who are facing similar challenges in exercising their right to collective bargaining."  

"As a Councilmember of the City of Pasadena, I am pleased to honor Allysha Almada, who has courageously advocated for safe patient care and the right to organize at Huntington Memorial Hospital," said Councilmember Victor Gordo. "Allysha is an inspiration to all of us who care deeply about Pasadena and we’re proud that she’s representing our community at the White House Summit on Worker Voice."

Almada was fired from Huntington Memorial Hospital shortly after testifying on a Sunday, July 26, community panel in Pasadena about nurses’ efforts to address patient care issues by organizing as a union. Almada’s ICU co-worker and fellow union supporter Vicki Lin was also fired, a move nurses say management made in an effort to appear as if they were conducting generalized firings. The California Nurses Association/National Nurses United (CNA/NNU) has filed an unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board.

Huntington Memorial RNs began organizing to affiliate with CNA/NNU in May of 2014, after attempts to engage management on patient care issues were rebuffed. Management responded with an illegal effort to thwart unionization. Despite being issued a formal NLRB complaint—citing seven instances of unlawful conduct—management continued its pattern of union-busting up through the RNs’ attempted election in April of 2015. CNA/NNU ultimately called on federal officials to set aside the election, citing more than 40 election violations that made a “free and fair election impossible.”