Board: St. Rose favored rival union

By Michael Mishak (contact)

Tuesday, Aug. 12, 2008 | 2 a.m.

The National Labor Relations Board has ruled that St. Rose Dominican Hospitals illegally assisted an insurgent union’s campaign this year to gain representation of nearly 1,100 registered nurses.

At issue is a neutrality agreement St. Rose’s parent company, Catholic Healthcare West, signed with the California Nurses Association last year. In it, the company agrees not to campaign against the union during organizing drives at its hospitals and to grant employees unpaid leaves of absence so they can organize.

Honoring the agreement, St. Rose management gave the California group access to conference rooms and bulletin boards in three Las Vegas Valley hospitals while it campaigned to oust the Service Employees International Union, which represents the nurses. The company also granted two nurses leaves so they could campaign for the rival union.

In doing so, St. Rose violated federal labor law because management bypassed the SEIU, which has been the “exclusive collective bargaining representative” of the nurses since 2004, the board found. Issues such as facility access and leave are subject to negotiation, the board said.

St. Rose spokesman Andy North said the company “has not intentionally engaged in any conduct or practice that would ruin the integrity of the impartial environment it has worked to foster.”

He added: “During the election process, St. Rose worked collaboratively with SEIU, CNA and the National Labor Relations Board to foster a fair and impartial environment in which the nurses involved could freely make an informed decision.”

The board’s complaint nevertheless gives the SEIU ammunition against its competitor as it negotiates a new contract with St. Rose — and campaigns to keep its members.

In the election battle this spring, more nurses voted to join the California association than to retain the SEIU. Neither union won, however, because a small number of nurses voted for neither union and six votes were contested. That prevented either side from reaching the federal labor law threshold of 50 percent of votes.

In the aftermath, the SEIU filed objections and unfair labor practice charges, triggering an investigation that led to a formal complaint against St. Rose last month.

Jill Furillo, Nevada director of the California Nurses Association, called the board’s ruling a “technical argument that obscures the fact that the SEIU did have far greater access during the election.”

A majority of nurses in the St. Rose bargaining unit have signed a petition asking management to withdraw recognition of the SEIU, she said. “Rather than get hung up on all these technicalities, let’s go forward with a new election,” Furillo said. “The SEIU is trying to stall the election because they know they would lose the election.”

An SEIU spokeswoman said officials familiar with the St. Rose campaign were in meetings and unavailable for comment.

The two unions have battled bitterly over registered nurses here and elsewhere.

St. Rose has until Thursday to submit its response to the board’s findings, and the matter will be heard by an administrative law judge, who could decide to call either a runoff election between the two unions or a rerun election with the “no union” option.

The judge could also decide, based on the outstanding objections, to dismiss the California Nurses Association’s election petition altogether. A hearing date has not been set.