Judge Grants Injunction Barring UC Nurses From Rescheduling Strike
On Friday, San Francisco Superior Court Judge Peter Busch granted an injunction that will prevent about 11,000 University of California nurses from holding a strike over staffing concerns, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
On June 8, Busch issued a temporary restraining order that barred the nurses from participating in a one-day, multi-hospital strike on June 10. The new injunction prohibits the nurses from rescheduling the walkout.
In his latest ruling, Busch said the strike would be an unfair labor practice that would violate technicalities in the nurses' contracts (Joseph, San Francisco Chronicle, 6/19). Busch also said the strike would put unfair pressure on the negotiation process between nurses and UC (Thanawala, AP/Santa Cruz Sentinel, 6/18).
According to a university spokesperson, the injunction will last either until the nurses' current contract expires on Sept. 30 or until the next round of contract negotiations ends, whichever comes later (San Francisco Chronicle, 6/19).
CNA Reaction
The California Nurses Association, which helped organize the June 10 strike, said it would abide by the judge's ruling (Hennessy-Fiske, "L.A. Now," Los Angeles Times, 6/19).
CNA also said it would continue its efforts to push for improved staffing levels at UC facilities (Calvan, Sacramento Bee, 6/19).
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