Before the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) closed up on its first day of hearings about a proposed rule that would potentially remove frivolous litigation and delays in union elections, they heard from SEIU member Veronica Tench who knows first hand why working people deserve comprehensive labor law reform, now.
"Veronica's story shows that the system needs to change. The Board's proposed rule change is a commonsense approach that would allow employees to make a free, informed and timely choice about joining a union without unnecessary delay and litigation. It also seeks to uphold rights that we hold dear in a free country - the right to vote," said SEIU President Mary Kay Henry.
In early 1998, Veronica, and other hospital workers at St. Vincent Medical Center in Los Angeles felt it was time that they had a voice on the job. St. Vincent's technical staff--the employees who assist physicians and nurses with patient care--wanted to improve critical patient care issues, specifically the number of staff assigned to patient care units per shift, so they started organizing themselves to form a union.
On June 24 of this year - thirteen years after they began organizing - 400 workers finally were able to vote to join SEIU-UHW. For more than a decade Veronica and her co-workers faced a fierce anti-union campaign that had delayed their efforts. Today, St. Vincent is a different kind of employer and agreed to a fair and timely process for employees to hold an election.
After testifying at the hearing, Veronica said,
"Now that we have a union we'll be able to make sure that experienced caregivers stay at our hospital and continue to provide for our families. But it shouldn't have taken more than a decade for us to be able to vote for our union, so I'd like to make sure future workers have a more reasonable and fair process available to them."
And...unfortunately, we shouldn't be surprised that the CEOs, corporations and shady interest groups that enriched and protected Wall Street and Big Business oppose the NLRB's proposed rule change -- or any change that would provide workers more fairness when it comes to choosing to form a union. Why is that? Because America's economic and tax policies are making them rich and they want to keep it that way. The corporations that bought and paid for these politicians are calling the shots.
This commonsense rule change presents a level playing field. When working people choose to exercise their legal right to form a union, they should be able to do so without the fierce intimidation, bullying and threats from cash-cow-corporations. If you are in total agreement, click here and get yourself heard!
