New Staff

November 2013

Jacque Bowman, RN

As UNAC/UHCP’s newest Staff Organizer, working with the Kaiser Physical, Occupational and Recreation Therapists, Jacque Bowman loves talking to people about the union. Jacque’s mother worked at the post office so the union was always important.

After going through a divorce, Jacque often had to work two jobs to support her children.Setting a good example for them, she finished school and became a nurse. As Treasurer at Kaiser Fontana, she had a chance to help organize the Kaiser Therapists and loved it. So when the job at UNAC/UHCP opened up, she relished the opportunity. Jacque loves to walk, and to read anything, even her kids’ school books.

Max Carbuccia

Max Carbuccia comes from a family full of nurses and passionate union members, so becoming UNAC/UHCP’s new Assistant Director for Collective Bargaining and Representation in San Diego may have been destiny. When he met his wife she was organizing nurses. After marriage and graduation, he joined AFSCME’s political department in Sacramento. He moved on to Political Director for United Domestic Workers and later worked for California Nurses Association, both in San Diego.

At UNAC/UHCP he shares a vision of building from within at Sharp and other San Diego area affiliates. He ran his first mini-triathlon last year and loves to watch his two sons play sports.

Deirdre Kirkwood, RN

Perhaps Deirdre Kirkwood’s greatest qualification for UNAC/UHCP is that she refuses to be afraid. As a nurse she helped organize both Riverside Community and Parkview. Later at Kaiser Riverside she was elected Hospital President.

In 2011 she helped organize the Specialty Care Nurses of Southern California (SCNSC) at Kaiser, and is the new Staff Representative for their northern region. She misses the bedside, but believes she can have greater influence for patients by fighting for nurses. She and her husband have a son and a daughter and live within two miles of where Deirdre grew up in Riverside.