Nurses from Legacy Good Samaritan Medical Center, Legacy Emanuel Medical Center and Randall Children's Hospital, all in Portland, Ore., have taken a step toward unionization.
The nurses delivered a letter to management at Legacy Emanuel, petitioning for voluntary recognition so that they could promptly begin collective bargaining over issues such as staffing and patient care, according to the Oregon Nurses Association.
ONA will also be filing for an election with the National Labor Relations Board, the union said in a Jan. 6 news release.
If an election is conducted and nurses vote in favor of unionization, the ONA would represent more than 2,200 nurses across three campuses, which are part of Portland-based Legacy Health.
"Legacy nurses have waited decades for this moment," Sarah Zavala, RN, said in the release. "Unionizing with ONA is about empowering nurses to provide the highest standard of care, ensuring safe staffing, and protecting the well-being of both staff and patients."
The campaign comes months after Portland-based Oregon Health & Science University filed notified the Oregon Health Authority of detailed plans to merge with Legacy Health. The systems are expected to finalize the deal by spring 2025.
Legacy Health shared the following statement with Becker's:
"We respect our nurses' rights to determine union representation through an election to be held by the National Labor Relations Board."