Organizing: Know your rights

Submitted by ADonahue on

(Video) Tenet nurses, "We can organize and win anywhere!"

You have a legal right to organize under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), a federal labor law. In the case of many public hospitals, state law that is similar to the NLRA governs the process.

Your rights

You have the right to:

  • Sign an NNOC/NNU card and attend meetings to discuss NNOC/NNU.
  • Talk to other nurses about NNOC/NNU during work time just as you are allowed to discuss other personal matters such as soccer games or your children.
  • Hand out written materials on nonwork time (breaks, etc.) in nonwork areas such as the cafeteria, locker rooms, and nurses’ lounge.
  • Post NNOC/NNU materials on general-purpose bulletin boards, distribute in mailboxes, etc.

It is illegal for your employer to require you to discuss your feelings about NNOC/NNU or to discipline you in any way for exercising your rights to join or support NNOC/NNU.

Anti-union employer campaigns

Most hospitals hire professional consultants to try and stop nurses from organizing. Hospitals typically pay consultants $3,000 – $4,000 per day! Despite these consultants, RNs have won 93 percent of their NNOC/NNU elections. When nurses are united in their desire to organize, they have had great success in defeating these campaigns.

For more information on anti-union campaigns, request the NNOC/NNU publication: Navigating Through an Anti-Union Campaign. Contact NNOC/NNU here.