National Nurses United

NATIONAL N ational nurses United (NNU), celebrated being named the Gallup poll's most honest and eth- ical profession for the 22nd consecutive year. "Nurses are incredibly honored that the sacred bond of trust we have with our patients has once again been uplifted in the Gallup poll," said NNU President Jean Ross, RN. "Our patients know we will always be there to advocate for them, whether that means standing up to our employers' corporate greed and demanding safe patient care conditions in our work- places—or speaking up at the highest levels of power on issues that impact public health and safety. Year after year, nurses will always fight to ensure our patients come first." In a poll conducted Jan. 1 to Jan. 20, 2023, 78 percent of U.S. adults said nurses have "high" or "very high" honesty and ethi- cal standards. Gallup first conducted its Honesty and Ethics poll in 1976 and has updated it annually since 1990. A handful of professions have been on the list every year, while Gallup asks about others periodically. "The image of many professions—par- ticularly those in the medical field—sharply improved in 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic. However, that effect was short- lived … a select few—led by nurses for the 22nd consecutive year—maintain overall positive ratings," read the Gallup release. Nurses have taken the number-one spot on Gallup's Honesty and Ethics list in all but one year since they were added in 1999. The exception is 2001, when firefighters were measured on a one-time basis shortly after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. With nearly 225,000 members nation- wide, NNU has been a leading force for building an equitable health care system that puts patients over profits. NNU just capped a banner year of organizing and col- lective bargaining, with nurses winning union election victories in states across the country and secur- ing historic contracts that increase nurses' power to protect their patients. NNU nurse lead- ers have also recently testified to the U.S. Congress on issues including safe staffing, Medicare for All, and artificial intelligence in health care. "In a health care system animated by cor- porate greed, nurses are driven by care, and we are empowered by the public's trust in our profession," said Ross. "We want our patients to know that nurses will stay loud and keep using our collective power through 2024 and beyond to win the safe patient care conditions and public health protec- tions people across this country deserve." —Staff report Nurses named most trusted profession for 22nd consecutive year RNs ranked most honest and ethical profession by public MISSOURI R egistered nurses at SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital (SLUH) in St. Louis, Mo., held a two-day strike in December to protest management's persistent union- busting and outsourcing of RN jobs. National Nurses Organizing Committee has represented nurses at SLUH since 2012. SLUH nurses have been in negotiations since May 2023 for a new contract with little to no movement on key issues. Their con- tract expired on June 15, 2023. The RNs held an informational picket about the issues on July 19 and a one-day strike on Sept. 25. The nurses urge management to invest in nursing staff and agree to a contract that addresses nurse retention and stops the overutilization of external agency nurses. The union also filed an unfair labor prac- tices complaint with the National Labor Relations Board against SLUH for coordi- nating a decertification effort when management should have been bargaining in good faith. Management has been actively recruiting nurses to leave the union. "We condemn SSM for trying to break the union by encouraging nurses to leave the union instead of bargaining in good faith," said Maddi O'Leary, RN in the blood and marrow transplant clinic at SLUH. "SSM seems to be dragging this process out and encouraging the decertification of our union. This is why we are striking." "We have a staffing crisis, but a revolving door of outsourced nurses is not the solu- tion," said Earline Shepard, RN in the cardiac catheterization lab at SLUH. "We are taking time away from our patients to assist temporary agency nurses. Staff nurses can give our patients the continuity of care they need in their medical treatment." —Chuleenan Svetvilas St. Louis nurses strike again RNs at Saint Louis University Hospital hold two-day strike J A N U A R Y | F E B R U A R Y | M A R C H 2 0 2 4 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 11

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