Doug Cunningham, Workers Independent News, June 12, 2012 Now that they’ve voted overwhelmingly to join the National Nurses Organizing Committee- Missouri, registered nurses at Saint Louis University Hospital are looking forward to their first contract. Six hundred registered nurses will now be represented by the affiliate of the 175,000 member National Nurses United. Leaders of the national union say this vote will inspire other nurses in the region to consider joining the union. National Nurses United director RoseAnn DeMoro says wherever nurses have won a collective voice on the job with the union they’ve been able to make a substantial difference in the delivery of safe patient care while raising standards for nurses.

Mike Hall, AFL-CIO, June 8, 2012 By a landslide of 76 percent, registered nurses at Saint Louis University Hospital voted Thursday night to join the National Nurses Organizing Committee-Missouri (NNOC-Missouri), an affiliate of the National Nurses United (NNU). Lesa Dustman, an intensive care unit RN, says the 600 nurses at the hospital, "now have a vehicle to negotiate for improved patient care, salaries and benefits that can recruit and retain the best nurses for the best patients in Saint Louis. We have no illusions about the work ahead but with unity and resolve, we look forward to a bright future." ... Saint

RNs at Saint Louis University Hospital vote by 76% to affiliate with National Nurses United.
National Nurses Organizing Committee-Missouri, June 8, 2012 Saint Louis – By a landslide of 76 percent, registered nurses at Saint Louis University Hospital (SLUH) Thursday night voted to join the National Nurses Organizing Committee-Missouri (NNOC-Missouri), an affiliate of the 175,000-member National Nurses United (NNU), the largest union and professional association of RNs in the US.

 The secret ballot election was conducted by the National Labor Relations Board. The final count was 305 to 99 to affiliate with NNOC-Missouri/NNU ... Saint

Randolph Heaster, Kansas City Star, September 15, 2010 Nurses at Research Medical Center have voted to join a union, making Research the biggest organized hospital in Missouri. In an election conducted by the National Labor Relations Board on Tuesday, 258 registered nurses voted in favor of representation while 148 voted against. About 540 nurses were eligible to participate in the election. Research also became the first local hospital organized by National Nurses United, which was formed last December through the merger of three nurses unions, including California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee. ... Nurses

Research Med Center Becomes Largest Union Hospital in Missouri, Latest in Election Wave for National Nurses United at HCA Hospitals. National Nurses United, September 15, 2010 Kansas City - Registered nurses at Research Medical Center in Kansas City Tuesday night voted by nearly two-thirds to join the National Nurses Organizing Committee-Missouri, an affiliate of the National Nurses United, the US' largest union and professional association of RNs. In a secret ballot election conduced by the National Labor Relations Board, the RNs voted 258 to 148, a 64 percent margin, for NNOC-Missouri, a decision greeted by cheers and hugs by nurses ... Kansas

James Parks, AFL-CIO, September 15, 2010 It took a decade of hard work, but the 600 registered nurses at the Research Medical Center in Kansas City finally have a stronger voice in patient care and working conditions. Last night, they voted to join the National Nurses Organizing Committee-Missouri, an affiliate of the National Nurses United (NNU). Research Medical is owned by HCA Midwest Health System, part of the largest hospital system in the country. With the vote, Research Medical Center becomes the largest union hospital in Missouri. NNU also represents RNs at two nearby HCA Midwest hospitals ... Kansas

Randolph Heaster, Kansas City Star, August 16, 2010 Helped by a national group critical of organized labor, a Research Medical Center nurse has challenged an alleged cooperative agreement between the hospital and union organizers. Last week, the nurse, Mary Hill, filed complaints with the local office of the National Labor Relations Board against Research, parent company HCA Inc. and two unions: National Nurses United and SEIU Healthcare Missouri/Kansas. Hill filed her unfair labor practice charges with the help of the National Right to Work Foundation, which is based in Springfield, Virginia, and says it provides legal aid to employees affected ... Research

Union, hospital will continue negotiations. Dave Dreeszen, Sioux City Journal, June 29, 2010 Sioux City - Union nurses at Mercy Medical Center on Monday overwhelming rejected the latest contract offer from the Sioux City hospital. But the two sides said they would continue to negotiate past the expiration of the current three-year contract on Wednesday, averting - at least for now - a potential strike. Of the 217 registered nurses who voted Monday, 205, or 95 percent, rejected the hospital’s “last, best and final offer,” while only 12 supported it, said Marvin Harrington, president of the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 222. ... Mercy

Miranda Wycoff, Lee’s Summit Journal, April 22, 2010 Lee’s Summit Medical Center officials are puzzled, to say the least, by the recent findings of the regional office of the Labor Relations Board. The nurses there voted 68 to 59 to decertify their union in October 2009, a vote that was overseen by the National Labor Relations Board. But in March Michael Werner, the NLRB hearing officer, recommended that the union desertification election be re-held. ... Nurses

Mike Sherry, Kansas City Business Journal, April 6, 2010 A federal hearing officer has recommended that a union vote at Lee’s Summit Medical Center be set aside and held again. In the October election, nurses voted 68-59 to decertify the union. But four objections filed by Nurses United/National Nurses Organizing Committee-California Nurses Association were sustained by Michael Werner, who heard the case at the Overland Park regional office of the National Labor Relations Board. In his March 25 ruling, Werner found that Lee’s Summit Medical Center officials had:

• Removed union literature from a break room twice during the week of the election.
• Interrogated an employee about her union sentiments.

Jessie Fowble, KOMU, February 4, 2010 Columbia - Three nurses and three ENT surgeons from the University of Missouri arrived back home today after an eight day trip to Haiti. The nurses and surgeons saw 300 patients with various problems on the trip and operated on about 30 different individuals. They focused on facial trauma, but they tended to non-trauma issues as well. One doctor described you can watch all of the different stories on television, but it becomes much more real in person. ... Help

Lee's Summit Journal, November 3, 2009 With a secret ballot vote of 68-59, the nurses of Lee’s Summit Medical Center voted October 29-30 to decertify Nurses United/National Nurses Organizing Committee-California Nurses Association as its union. The National Labor Relations Board oversaw the election. The vote came following a petition filed July 1 with the National Labor Relations Board and then circulated among the nurses at Lee’s Summit Medical Center. ... LSMC

Sandra Baldry, Lee’s Summit, Kansas City Star, November 2, 2009“Nursing jobs to be overhauled” (10/23, Business) gives much cause for concern among health care professionals. As a registered nurse, I have questions for Saint Luke’s Hospital spokeswoman Kerry O’Connor. By de-skilling patient care technicians to nursing assistants and reducing their numbers, how is the registered nurse to have “more hands-on opportunity for bedside care” without more nurses? At a lower rate of pay and with fewer co-workers, will assistants be able to maintain high-quality care?

Mike Sherry, Kansas City Business Journal, November 2, 2009 Nurses at Lee’s Summit Medical Center ousted their union by a vote 68 to 59, according to results provided Monday by the National Labor Relations Board. The two-day election ended at 9 PM Friday, NLRB Regional Director Daniel Hubbel said. The union representing the nurses was the National Nurses Organizing Committee, which is part of the California Nurses Association. Union spokeswoman Julie Perry said that the union would contest the election results because of alleged “improper conduct.” ... Lee

Randolph Heaster, Kansas City Star, November 2, 2009 Nurses at Lee’s Summit Medical Center voted to remove their union as bargaining agent, but the results will be contested. In an election held over two days last week, 68 nurses voted to remove a unit of the California Nurses Association while 59 voted to retain it, said Dan Hubbel, regional director of the National Labor Relations Board. About 150 nurses at the medical center were eligible to vote in the election. The California Nurses Association’s National Nurses Organizing Committee has represented nurses at Lee’s Summit and Menorah Medical Center for the past few months, succeeding Nurses United Local 5126. ... Nurses