California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee (CNA/NNOC) today announced the selection of Puneet Maharaj as the new executive director to lead the union. Puneet succeeds Bonnie Castillo, RN in this position.

CNA/NNOC presidents Cokie Giles, RN; Michelle Gutierrez Vo, RN; Cathy Kennedy, RN; and Sandy Reding, RN say Maharaj embodies the strength, the smarts, the courage, and the vision necessary to fight fiercely for the union, for the nursing profession, for patients, and for communities during politically treacherous times.  

“Corporate and political forces want to destroy our solidarity, replace us with artificial intelligence, deprive our patients of health care and bodily autonomy, and remove all protections for workers. Puneet sees clearly that the Trump administration and corporate powers have one singular goal — to maximize their profits at our expense — and is ready to marshal and build our power to not only block that agenda, but advance our own plan for an economy and society based upon respect for workers and for nursing care,” said the CNA/NNOC presidents in a joint statement.

Maharaj comes to the role after working for more than 13 years in nearly every capacity at the union, including her latest position as National Political and Government Relations Director, coordinating all of the union’s federal and California state political work. Maharaj immigrated to the United States from India in 1992 with her single mother, lending to a deep understanding of the promises and challenges of life as an immigrant worker. Nurses say they are confident she will provide the fierce leadership that’s needed in this moment.

See here for a more detailed biography of Maharaj. 

CNA/NNOC is the nation’s largest, state-based union of direct-care RNs, with more than 100,000 members in all 50 states.