Nurses at UPMC McKeesport (Pa.) will vote later this month on whether to decertify the union that represents them, according to a Pittsburgh Post-Gazette report.
Here are five things to know.
1. The Service Employees International Union represents nearly 200 nurses at UPMC McKeesport. However, some nurses are looking to decertify the union.
2. The nurses filed a petition with the National Labor Relations Board for a decertification election, and an election was scheduled for Jan. 30, according to the hospital. Negotiations for a new labor contract are slated to begin Jan. 31.
3. The union said in a statement to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that UPMC has used "its power and wealth to try to undo our decision to join together and bargain improvements for our patients and our profession."
"McKeesport nurses aren't letting UPMC's tactics divert us from pushing for quality patient care, better staffing and a strong hospital," the statement reads.
4. UPMC declined to comment to the publication. However, the organization has reportedly supported decertification efforts.
5. As those decertification efforts came about, SEIU has been engaged in organizing activitiy at other Western Pennsylvania workplaces, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, which cites a review of elections certified by the Pittsburgh NLRB office. The union has also implemented various efforts, including marches, in its attempt to get UPMC to raise wages for employees, and has advocated for employees' rights to unionize.
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