SFRNA Nurses Stand Up for Freedom to Form Unions – February 06, 2009

February 2009

UNAC nurses--including SFRNA's own Scott Byington--and staff members marched and rallied in the pouring rain on February 5th to show support for the Employee Free Choice Act, which will give working people the right to choose to join a union by signing cards, establish stronger penalties against employers who violate the rights of employees trying to form a union or negotiate their first contract, and will provide mediation and arbitration for first-contract disputes.

"If the Employee Free Choice Act had been law years ago, St. Francis nurses would have had a voice on the job much more quickly than they did," Scott said. It took a 10-year struggle to form a union at St. Francis--one that went all the way up to the Supreme Court!

"If there was a card count at St. Francis, it would have been over and done with. We would have been organized much sooner," Scott stated at the march. "We've gained strength and cohesion over time. We would have been stronger quicker and have had more of a voice in patient care earlier. Today, with our union, we have a lot of input in patient care."

Please join the campaign to bringing fairness back to union organizing and help health care professionals to truly advocate for their patients by contacting Senator Dianne Feinstein and asking her to co-sponsor the Employee Free Choice Act. Participate in our e-mail campaign by visiting www.unionvoice.org/campaign/FreeChoiceAct2009.

For photos and news from the march, visit the UNAC/UHCP website at www.unac-ca.org . For more information about the proposed law, check out www.EmployeeFreeChoiceAct.org.