Two CNA-Supported Candidates Win Seats on Antelope Valley Hospital Board

Two candidates supported by the California Nurses Association have won seats on the board of Antelope Valley Hospital, which could bolster the CNA's effort to unionize nurses at the facility, the Los Angeles Times reports (Fausset, Los Angeles Times, 11/7). A majority of the hospital's nurses in May submitted signed authorization cards voting to join the CNA. Under a new state law (AB 1281) that took effect Jan. 1, union supporters can collect the signatures of a majority of nurses at a hospital to approve unionization, rather than hold an election. However, Antelope Valley officials said that the law does not override a hospital policy requiring a secret ballot election to approve unionization. But recently, an administrative law judge with the Public Employment Labor Relations Board ruled that the new state law supersedes the hospital requirement for a secret ballot election (California Healthline, 10/11). June Snow, who received 27% of the vote in the seven-candidate race and was endorsed by CNA, said she would introduce a motion in December that would "effectively end the board's opposition to the unionization effort," according to the Times. She said that blocking the unionization effort was a "waste of patient-care dollars." Don Parazo, who garnered 23% of the vote and was also endorsed by CNA, said he would "support such a motion." Parazo and Snow said they hope to win the vote of another board member to create the majority needed to pass the motion. Board member Abdallah Farrukh said yesterday that he would "consider" the motion but did not want unionization to "affect patient care," according to the Times. He added, "I want to make sure a strike doesn't happen at our institution" (Los Angeles Times, 11/7).