The National Labor Relations Board has certified the union election of physicians at Minneapolis-based Allina Health's Mercy Hospital over the health system's objections, the Minnesota Reformer reported Jan. 12.
In a statement shared with Becker's, Allina said it will not take additional procedural action and will prepare to negotiate a first labor contract.
"I have been crying tears of joy, thinking what adversity we had to overcome over the last year," Tomas Murdych, MD, said, according to the Minnesota Reformer. "We now welcome our union of hospital-employed physicians."
Physicians at Mercy Hospital's Unity and Mercy campuses in Fridley, Minn., and Coon Rapids, Minn., voted to join Doctors Council SEIU in early 2023, citing a need to boost physician input and promote patient-centered healthcare.
Law firm Littler Mendelson, representing Allina, argued that several physicians involved in the organizing campaign were statutory supervisors and/or managerial employees who engaged in objectionable and illegal pro-union conduct, according to the Minnesota Reformer.
A National Labor Relations Board hearing officer rejected those claims. Allina appealed the decision, but that effort failed when an NLRB regional director upheld the previous decision.
"Allina Health is deeply grateful for the expertise of team members like the physicians at Mercy Hospital who deliver exceptional patient care every day," Allina said in its statement. "We had committed to taking steps to make sure the National Labor Relations Board's process was fair to all involved."
Now, the health system said it is "focused on ensuring Allina Health remains a top place to work in healthcare and an industry leader for quality patient care."
More than 100 physicians at Mercy Hospital will negotiate their first labor contract. Around 400 physicians and 150 nurse practitioners and physician assistants working at Allina clinics have also voted to join the Doctors Council, an affiliate of the Service Employees International Union.