Nurses File Federal Charges Against Flagstaff Medical Center Administration - Cite multiple violations of labor law including intimidation, retaliation, and suppression of nurses' union literature

Attorneys for the National Nurses Organizing Committee / California Nurses Association (NNOC / CNA) filed complaints with the National Labor Relations Board in Phoenix on behalf of the registered nurses of Flagstaff Medical Center.

The complaint cited 16 examples of Section 7 violations of the National Labor Relations Act. Specific examples of unlawful supervisor conduct include but are not limited to:

• tearing down RN union literature while other literature is allowed to be posted
• directing RNs to remove union buttons while other buttons are allowed to be worn
• telling nurses that they may lose certain economic benefits if the union wins (such as evaluations and merit raises)
• interrogating nurses about their union support and/or union activities
• retaliating against nurses who have been actively and openly supporting the union

"We were told that merit raises would be frozen if the union came in. That's simply not true," said Paula Chernock, RN. "Our merit raises are attached to annual reviews and according to past practice, this should not change. Had I not been there to rebut this, other nurses may have believed this was true."

Nurses want to negotiate a contract which provides a voice to address safe patient care policies, salaries, and benefits capable of recruiting and retaining the most qualified RNs.

The hospital has retained Global Labor Employment Strategies (GLES), anti-union labor consultants, to conduct a union-busting campaign aimed at who they assess to be union supporters. A representation election for the 550 RNs is scheduled for June 21-22.

If successful, the FMC RNs would become the first private sector hospital to unionize in Arizona in 40 years. NNOC / CNA is one of the fastest-growing unions in the U.S. today with 70,000 members nationwide.