National Nurses United

J A N U A R Y | F E B R U A R Y | M A R C H 2 0 2 1 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 A T I O N A L N U R S E 9 CALIFORNIA R egistered nurses who work at Sutter Center for Psychiatry in Sacramento voted by 83 percent in December to join the California Nurses Association. This is the largest free- standing psychiatric hospital in Northern California to achieve a union representation win in many years. In a mail-in ballot election conducted by the National Labor Relations Board, the RNs voted 62 to 13 for the union—an 83 percent victory margin. CNA, an affiliate of National Nurses United, will represent 100 RNs at the facility, which is owned by Sutter Health. "As patient advocates, we voted to join CNA to have a collective RN voice to make this a safer hospital for our patients and each other. Patient safety is our number-one priority," said Sutter Psych RN Natalya Yumin after the vote count. "Congratulations to the nurses at Sutter Psych, who put together an incredible cam- paign in the midst of this raging pandemic," said CNA/NNU President Zenei Triunfo- Cortez, RN. "In a year of such pain and suffering for our patients, and the stress and toll it has placed on nurses across the country, the determination of nurses to join together to protect their patients and themselves is truly heartwarming and inspiring. We are thrilled to welcome you to our CNA family." Sutter Psych RNs began their campaign in April to affiliate with CNA, and their col- leagues at 13 other Sutter CNA-represented hospitals. They unified on a platform to win improvements in safe staffing, workplace violence prevention, and a strong voice in overall patient safety and infectious disease protocols, a concern amplified by the mam- moth Covid-19 pandemic. "We want a voice in staffing and schedul- ing," said Sutter Psych RNs Anna Ramahl and Tarra Martine in a joint statement dur- ing the campaign. "It's our job to advocate for our patients and we are excited to do that through our union." "As a union, we can push for safer policies around Covid-19 and other infectious diseases," said Sutter Psych RN Frank Mitchell during the campaign. "Our collective strength means we can fight for adequate and accessible PPE." Just weeks later in January, registered nurses at Sutter Coast Hospital in Crescent City on California's northwest coast also voted by a landslide to join CNA. "We are thrilled to be joining our 8,000 Sutter RN colleagues to bring a unified voice for advocating for safe patient care for our patients here in Crescent City, as well as throughout the Sutter system, which is even more critical in the midst of this deadly pan- demic," said Sutter Coast RN Niki Pope. In a mail-in ballot election conducted by the National Labor Relations Board, the RNs voted 70 to 12 for the union, an 85 per- cent victory margin. CNA will represent about 100 RNs at the facility. The victory followed months of organiz- ing among the nurses seeking to ensure safer staffing and a collective voice in patient care conditions, as well as other strong health and safety protections for nurses and patients, including workplace violence protections and proper infectious disease controls. "As nurses, having proper staffing for RNs and support staff, better training and education, and high standards of care and safety are our priorities. With CNA, we can make sure that decisions are based on what's best for our patients, not the bottom line," said Sutter Coast RN Brea Buchanan. Like other areas of the state, California's north coast has experienced an increasingly serious surge in the Covid-19 pandemic. Nurses say Sutter Coast is not dedicating the resources to make sure that there are enough negative pressure rooms, or that they are working properly. Inadequate staffing has also been a growing problem due to an inability of the hospital to retain experienced RNs and some nurses on medical leave due to workplace violence incidents. "As a union, we can push for safer policies and accountability around workplace violence to better protect our staff and community," said Anna Holmes, RN. "Our collective strength means we can enforce California's workplace violence prevention regulations, which CNA helped pass in 2017, and increase staffing, training, and education for all staff." Triunfo-Cortez welcomed and thanked the Sutter Coast RNs for their "dedication to strengthening safety standards for patients and workplace conditions for [their] coworkers." Sutter Coast was one of the last remain- ing non-union facilities in the large Sutter Health system, and serves patients from both Northern California and bordering Southern Oregon. CNA, the largest RN union in California, now represents about 8,000 RNs at 15 Sutter hospitals. "At Sutter Coast, our patients are our neigh- bors, our family, and our friends. We have the responsibility to care for them as such," said Sutter Coast RN Blakely Winner. "I'm excited to join CNA to strengthen the collective voice of the nurses. I voted yes to advocate for improved patient care and a safe working envi- ronment for my colleagues." —Staff report Northern California Sutter RNs unionize

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