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4 » RNs in Motion About California Nurses Association WHO WE ARE California Nurses Association (CNA) has won some of the best contracts for RNs in the nation through the collective action of our members. Years ago, nurses were among the lowest-paid professionals, enjoyed no retirement benefits, and worked every weekend. Since direct-care nurses took over leadership of the organi- zation in 1993, we aggressively organized, dramatically expanding our membership and winning safe staffing conditions, secure retirement, and salaries commensu- rate with experience. CNA exists to provide a voice for the working, direct- care nurse, and a vision for our nation's health care. We believe that a strong professional nurses union empowers us to take our patient advocacy from the patient's side to the statehouse, and beyond. Individual patient advocacy begins at our workplaces and is insep- arable from collective, social, and political advocacy in our greater society. We have repeatedly stepped outside the walls of our facilities in our obligation as patient advocates, whether it be our 13-year fight to win and defend California's historic safe staffing ratios, or forming the Registered Nurse Response Network (RNRN) — a national network of nearly 29,000 volunteer direct-care RNs, ready to be deployed to disaster-stricken areas, such as the Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina, Haiti after its devastating earthquake, the Standing Rock Sioux reservation in North Dakota to help provide first aid for those resisting the Dakota Access Pipeline, and Northern California in the aftermath of the deadly Camp Fire. The escalating health care crisis, caused by a system that puts the bottom line ahead of the best interests of patients, presents us with a significant opportunity to transform the health care system. As nurses, as patient advocates, we believe we must continue to change this system so that everyone is guaranteed health care free at the point of service, based on a single standard of high-quality care for all. And we are uniquely positioned to accomplish this: Year after year, nurses rank first on an annual Gallup Poll survey as the most honest and ethical profession. The public listens to us and we use this trust and credibility to advocate for change. As members, you have abundant opportunities for education, personal growth, and meaningful, effective action in your facility, in the halls of our legislatures, and in your communities. CNA provides you with the protections and the resources to allow you to do so. As members of a professional organization, we monitor and evaluate RN working conditions and the environment of care; we are committed to exposing and removing barriers to patient advocacy and safe standards of care. We believe that the benefits and opportunities available through membership in CNA — together with your desire and responsibility to provide safe, therapeutic, and effective care to your patients — will inspire you to be an active member, whether you are a new graduate or a nurse with decades of experience.