Steadfast Support for SEIU-UHW Forces NUHW to Call Off 3 More Elections; Total Losses @ 14

Another 200 Service Employees International Union – United Healthcare Workers West (SEIU-UHW) caregivers at three nursing homes – Central Gardens Convalescent Hospital in San Francisco, Millbrae Serra Convalescent Hospital in Millbrae, and Mission Bay Convalescent Hospital in San Francisco – won their election Friday over the National Union of Healthcare Workers (NUHW), the organization started by former SEIU-UHW President Sal Rosselli and other former union officials.

By a ten to one margin, caregivers are choosing SEIU-UHW over NUHW. The latest victories bring to 14 the growing number of facilities in which workers are staying united in SEIU-UHW. Since Rosselli and the others were removed from union office 15 months ago, 65,660 SEIU-UHW members have chosen to stay in SEIU-UHW – more than 95% of the members who have faced an election.

To avoid an overwhelming defeat, NUHW withdrew its petition with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), thus forfeiting the elections just days before the votes scheduled for April 28 and 29.

"It feels great to win! Because of our unity and the strength of our union, SEIU-UHW, we prevailed. NUHW finally got the message that we don’t want them to bother us anymore at Central Gardens," said Aliw Bandelaria, a certified nurses assistant at Central Gardens.

With this threat to their organization and contracts eliminated, these workers are now returning their focus to patient care and the workplace issues that affect it.

Beyond these losses, NUHW has been facing unprecedented setbacks on multiple fronts in recent weeks. Earlier this month a Federal jury held the organization and many of its officers and staff liable for $1.5M in damages for their conduct as they were removed from SEIU-UHW and formed NUHW. NUHW’s annual financial disclosure filed recently with the US Department of Labor indicates that they were $1.5M in debt even before the judgment.

Also this month NUHW has given up rather than face defeat at St. Francis Medical Center, part of the Daughters of Charity Health Systems, in Lynwood (920 workers), Tiller Oakridge Care Center in Oakridge (100 workers), San Marco Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Concord (90 workers), and Avalon Chowchilla nursing home in Avalon (50 workers), Hayward Convalescent in Hayward (80 workers) and Lifehouse in San Jose (120 workers). Workers at a small nursing home in San Francisco, Convalescent Center Mission Street, and Prison Health Services in Dublin and Oakland appear to have chosen NUHW by a small margin in elections held there this week, however SEIU-UHW will be filing formal objections to the election results due to management and Board misconduct.

“I’m so happy we won. NUHW knows they were not wanted here at Mission Bay. We are all happy they and their interference here is gone. Now we can move forward with what is important – taking care of our residents and securing our contract,” said Teresita Castro, a certified nurses assistant at Mission Bay.

Caregivers at 25 other facilities with elections scheduled will be voting in the coming weeks, although it is highly likely that NUHW will continue to pull out of many of these elections rather than suffer humiliating defeats.

Elections scheduled thus far:

April 30
Cedars of Marin in Ross, 20 workers

May 3
Tiburcio Vasquez Clinic in Hayward, 120 workers

May 4
Yuba City Care Center in Yuba City, 50 workers
Empress Care Center in San Jose, 60 workers
Greenfield Care Center of Fairfield, 60 workers
Shields Nursing Center – El Cerrito, 50 workers
Shields Nursing Center – Richmond, 50 workers

May 5
Marysville Care Center in Marysville, 90 workers
All Saints Sub-Acute & Rehabilitation Center in San Leandro, 80 workers

May 6
Vista Manor Nursing Center in San Jose, 80 workers
Kingsburg Care Center in Kingsburg, 70 workers
Creekside Care Center (Heritage) in Stockton, 50 workers
Washington Care and Rehabilitation Center in San Leandro, 60 workers

May 7
Country Villa in San Rafael, 60 workers
University Mound Ladies Home in San Francisco, 20 workers

May 10
Golden Living (Beverly Manor) Convalescent Center in Fresno, 160 workers
Clovis Convalescent Hospital in Clovis, 50 workers
Windsor Manor of Concord, 170 workers
Windsor Gardens of Hayward, 60 workers
Windsor Park Care Center of Fremont, 60 workers

May 11
Enloe Medical Center (Crothall) in Chico, 80 workers
Golden Living (Beverly) Center – Hy-Pana in Stockton, 70 workers
Golden Living (Beverly) Center in Galt, 70 workers

May 17
In-Home Supportive Services Consortium in San Francisco, 500 workers
Windsor Country Drive Care Center of Fremont, 100 workers

NUHW is still desperately trying to stop elections at Sutter Delta Medical Center in Antioch, Sutter Solano Medical Center in Vallejo, Sutter Eden Medical Center in Castro Valley, O’Connor Hospital in San Jose, St. Louise Regional Hospital in Gilroy, and Centinela Hospital in Inglewood. In many cases NUHW is now challenging the composition of the bargaining units, even though they are the same bargaining units for which they themselves petitioned for the election.