National Nurses United

Michigan Nurses Key to Vote on Constitutional Amendment MICHIGAN A whopping 684,286. That���s how many signatures Michigan Nurses Association members and other workers filed June 14, virtually guaranteeing that a plan to enshrine collective bargaining rights in the state Constitution will appear on the November ballot. The filing���of more than twice as many signatures required���is a historic milestone in a fight that MNA nurses are leading on behalf of themselves, their patients, and their communities. With corporate money sweeping state legislatures and a governor dancing around so-called ���right to work��� legislation, the fight makes Michigan the new national battleground for survival of the working class. ���Corporate-backed politicians are out to destroy collective bargaining because they understand that the right to organize is what gives workers power,��� said John Armelagos, an RN at the University of Michigan Health System and treasurer of the Protect Our Jobs coalition, which is organizing the initiative. ���The Michigan Legislature has passed one anti-worker bill after another, attacking every resident���s right to have a voice in the workplace. It���s a special threat to nurses because our very ability to advocate for our patients��� the core of our profession���is at risk.��� With the support of NNU, MNA mobilized with other labor groups to protect collective bargaining rights through the broad-based Protect Our Jobs campaign. MNA has been at the forefront of the JUNE 2012 hands of these regressive laws, just like we have seen suffering caused by the broken priorities of our federal government,��� Oppenheim said. ���NNU has been very influential in getting more nurses to not only be campaign since its launch in the spring, with increasingly aware of the dilemmas our patients face���housing, health care, educanurses going out in their communities tional costs, etc.���but to use our power to do collecting signatures to put the measure on something about it. We recognize that if we the ballot. cannot maintain and grow the middle class Leadership from the nurses at the in this country, what will become of real University of Michigan was instrumental. democracy?��� Armelagos himself collected 1,100 signaOppenheim, who spoke on the ���Coorditures, a process he found inspiring. ���Collecnated Assault on Collective Bargaining��� tive bargaining gave birth to the middle panel to hundreds of nurses at NNU���s 2012 class in Michigan, and people here understand better than many that the middle class Staff Nurse Assembly in Chicago, understands the challenges ahead for the will die without it,��� Armelagos said. ���While campaign. we were collecting signatures, people would Those include deep-pocketed rightsay things like ���My mom is in a union, and that helped me go to college��� and ���Thank you wingers and corporations hiding behind Citizens United, like those who helped Scott for doing this.������ Walker prevail in Wisconsin. Armelagos said Michigan residents are She said she expects even more volunstarting to see the assault on collective teers from the labor, faith, and progressive bargaining as part of a multi-faceted assault communities to mobilize to ensure the on democracy. Michigan���s recent emergency passage of the amendment. Right now, that manager law enables the state to take over means passionately educating both union cities and school districts by replacing localmembers and non-union members about ly elected officials with corporate executives the value of collective bargaining. who can nullify collective bargaining agree���MNA will remain leaders in the Protect ments; Republicans are pushing some of the Our Jobs campaign, telling our stories as most egregious voter suppression laws; and nurses to help the public understand what���s Michigan has garnered global attention for at stake,��� Armelagos said. ���One of our attacks on women���s reproductive rights and members was even the official signer for the the silencing of a female legislator who used petition on behalf of all Michigan workers. the word ���vagina.��� We���re proud to help Katie Oppenheim, a fellow lead the fight to RN at the University of MichiTo send a message of protect collective gan, said the only good news support to Michigan Nursbargaining, because about the oppressive climate in es Association members we refuse to let Michigan is that it is awakening fighting to protect colleccorporations and nurses and other workers to tive bargaining rights, politicians silence their own power. visit their Facebook page: our voices.��� ���Nurses see our patients and Facebook.com/minurses. their families suffering at the ���Dawn Kettinger W W W. N A T I O N A L N U R S E S U N I T E D . O R G N AT I O N A L N U R S E 9

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