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March 25, 2014 (San Diego)--Registered nurses who work in the large Veterans Administration hospital in San Diego have announced their request for an election to join the nation's largest organization of nurses, National Nurses United. California's largest RN union, the California Nurses Association, is affiliated with NNU.
The RNs petitioned the San Francisco regional office of the Federal Labor Relations Authority, which oversees collective bargaining for federal employees, to schedule and conduct a secret ballot election for the San Diego VA nurses. NNU will meet with FLRA officials to set the terms and date for a vote.
The election would cover some 500 RNs at VA San Diego Hospital which is located adjacent to the Thornton campus of the University of California San Diego Medical Center. UC San Diego RNs are already represented by CNA, which represents more than 85,000 California RNs, including nearly 6,000 in San Diego County.
NNU, the fastest growing union in the U.S., currently represents RNs at 22 VA hospitals across the U.S., part of a 185,000 member organization nationally.
"We're happy to have filed for our election," said VA San Diego RN Erin McLeod. "We've come a long way since we started organizing with NNU last summer when nurses felt intimidated. Now it's on to victory and a real voice in patient care."
VA San Diego RNs say they want to join NNU to have the collective strength to safely advocate for their patients without fear of retaliation, staffing based on the acuity of the patient, and other patient care and workplace improvements.
The RNs say improved care is critical to assuring that American men and women who provide service for their country receive the safe care they deserve and need.
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