Organizing: Know your rights
(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.
