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LABOR & EMPLOYMENT LAW — 4/11/08

Unions successfully targeting healthcare industry

The number of representation petitions filed and elections held across all industries declined in 2007, according to data from the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). Unions successfully continued to organize the nation's healthcare industry, however. IRI Consultants and the American Society for Healthcare Human Resources Administration (ASHHRA) released the data and analysis in the 30th Labor Activity in Healthcare Report.

Unions won 72 percent of representation (RC) elections held in healthcare in 2007, versus a union win rate of 62 percent in non-healthcare industries. The success rates for the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee (CNA/NNOC) and various state nurses associations were even higher at 79, 80 and 83 percent, respectively. The SEIU accounted for 47 percent of all representation petitions filed in the healthcare industry in 2007.

The states with the highest number of RC petitions filed in healthcare in 2007 include California, Illinois, Michigan, New York, Ohio and Washington. Minnesota, Missouri, Nevada, Oregon and Puerto Rico were the states and territories with the largest percentage increase in RC petition filings.

The Labor Activity in Healthcare Report also notes the year's major labor movement news stories in the healthcare industry, including: the CNA/NNOC joining the AFL-CIO and partnering with the Pennsylvania Association of Staff Nurses and Allied Professionals (PASNAP); disaffiliation of the state nurses associations of New York, Ohio, Oregon and Washington from the United American Nurses (UAN); the American Nurses Association's termination of its relationship with the UAN; and internal strife between SEIU leadership and its locals, particularly in California.

The report raises concerns about potential impacts of corporate campaigns being conducted by SEIU and UNITE-HERE against vendors that support healthcare providers, including Aramark, Cintas and ServiceMaster.

ASHHRA, a division of the American Hospital Association, is a membership organization of human resources professionals in the healthcare setting. IRI Consultants offers organization development and employee relations consulting.

Source: IRI Consultants

For more information on this and other topics, consult CCH Employment Practices Guide or CCH Labor Relations.

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