Nurseweek/Healthweek | Court rules charge nurses not supervisors in collective bargaining situations

Court rules charge nurses are not supervisors in collective bargaining

posted 9-10-97

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that charge nurses are not supervisors under federal labor law and are therefore protected in collective bargaining situations.

Unions are hailing the decision as a victory. "It’s a real boost for nurses as well as unions," said Joni Ketter, spokesperson for the Service Employees International Union, which represents half a million healthcare workers nationwide, including 90,000 nurses. "Nurses have a right to organize, and now they can rest assured they’ll be protected."

The court case stems from a 1994 election in which nurses at Providence Alaska Medical Center in Anchorage voted on whether to unionize. Hospital officials, citing a controversial 1994 U.S. Supreme Court decision, said the votes of charge nurses did not count because they are supervisors. The union vote failed without the charge nurses’ votes.

In a 2-to-1 decision last month, the appeals court concluded that the charge nurses did not qualify as supervisors under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) and that their votes should have counted, resulting in a win for the Alaska Nurses Association. "To the extent a charge nurse gave routine guidance to other RNs, she did so more in the capacity of a leadman or straw boss" and not a supervisor, according to the decision.

Supervisors, whose interests arguably are aligned with those of their employers, are not protected from being fired for union activities under the NLRA, said Barbara Sapin, general counsel for the American Nurses Association, which presented legal arguments in the 9th Circuit case.

"This [ruling] sets up a good momentum for other courts to follow," Sapin said. "We’re very excited because this opens the way for Providence to sit down and bargain in good faith."

Hospital officials said they won’t appeal the ruling, citing the impact such a delay would have on nurses at the facility. "In the spirit of moving forward, we will begin good-faith negotiations with the RN union," the hospital said in a statement.