The National Labor Relations Board has affirmed election results that led to the disbanding of a union at USC Verdugo Hills Hospital in Glendale, Calif., according to the Glendale News-Press.
The board's decision was based on a violation of procedural rules.
The violation occurred when the Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers West union did not serve hospital management with its objections to the election by its Feb. 7 filing date, according to Mori Rubin, a regional director with the labor board's Los Angeles regional office.
"Although the union later attempted to cure this deficiency after it was made aware of the issue," by serving hospital management on Feb. 11, "the union acknowledges that it failed to serve the employer with the objections when they initially were filed," Ms. Rubin wrote in a decision obtained by the News-Press.
Ms. Rubin also reportedly affirmed the January election results that resulted in 118 votes in favor of disbanding the union at the hospital, compared to 107 against.
The union has fought the results, claiming that hospital management improperly interfered in the election. SEIU-UHW's deadline to request review of the decision by the labor board's Washington, D.C., bureau is Feb. 27.
Union and hospital representatives declined to comment to the News-Press.
The election covered workers including certified nursing assistants, monitor technicians, obstetric technicians, central processing employees, buyers and phlebotomists.
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