Primary care physicians, physician associates and nurse practitioners at Corvallis, Ore.-based Samaritan Health Services‘ Samaritan Medical Group have petitioned for a union election with Northwest Medicine United, an AFT Healthcare affiliate.
Four things to know:
1. The union filed a representation petition with the National Labor Relations Board on Aug. 19 covering full-time, regular part-time and per diem clinicians at 25 Samaritan primary care clinics across Oregon. The petition lists 101 employees and is assigned to Region 19 in Seattle. No election has been scheduled.
The clinicians are seeking input on scheduling, patient access and clinic staffing, according to an Aug. 19 union news release shared with Becker’s. “Many of us have worked here for years and never want to leave. Unionization is about making the work we love sustainable,” Olivia Danforth, MD, a Samaritan physician of seven years, said in the release.
3. Samaritan received a request for voluntary recognition and declined it in favor of an NLRB election, Scott Russell, vice president of human resources, said in a statement shared with Becker’s. “Samaritan respects the rights of employees to make decisions regarding union representation,” he said, adding that the system believes a confidential secret ballot election is the most appropriate process.
4. Northwest Medicine United, founded in 2014, represents physicians and advanced practice providers in the Pacific Northwest at Vancouver, Wash.-based PeaceHealth, Renton, Wash.-based Providence, Tacoma, Wash.-based MultiCare Health System and Portland, Ore.-based Legacy Health. Samaritan, a nonprofit system with five hospitals and more than 80 physician clinics serving more than 290,000 residents, is set to affiliate with MultiCare.
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