SHARON NLRB says hospital punished unionizers

The hospital will get a chance to argue its case in a Jan. 8 hearing.
By HAROLD GWIN
VINDICATOR SHARON BUREAU
SHARON, Pa. -- The National Labor Relations Board has filed a complaint against Sharon Regional Health System, alleging the hospital illegally fired two employees for unionizing activities.
The complaint directs that those employees be reinstated with back pay and directs the hospital to correct less severe actions taken against three other employees also involved in unionizing efforts. The hospital denied the allegations.
Hospital's response: "Sharon Regional looks forward to participating in the upcoming hearing and is confident that no violations have occurred," the hospital said in a prepared statement.
Spokesman Ed Newmeyer said that hospital service, clerical and nonprofessional employees voted 360-183 on Feb. 22 to reject union representation by the Service Employees International Union.
After the election, the union filed six objections with the NLRB, seeking to get the election overturned, but the NLRB rejected those arguments and ruled that the election was proper and that Sharon Regional had acted fairly, Newmeyer said.
Gerald Kobell, NLRB director for the Pittsburgh region, said his office has since investigated five union unfair labor practice charges against the hospital related to retaliatory action against employees involved in the unionizing effort.
"We found merit to the charges," he said, adding he is ready to prove them in a Jan. 8 hearing before an NLRB administrative law judge.
The NLRB, however, settles about 90 percent of its complaints before they get to the hearing stage, he said, explaining that the affected parties can get together and work out a mutually acceptable arrangement that the NLRB would accept.
Virginia Bullard, organizing director for Local 627 of the SEIU, said the union filed the charges on behalf of the employees even though it doesn't represent them. The hospital fired workers close to the union effort to scare people away from further unionizing, Bullard said, adding that the SEIU is continuing its organizing efforts at the hospital.
Reduced work shifts: The NLRB complaint says the hospital reduced the number of work shifts July 1 for its guards (who voted in March to join the Security, Police and Fire Professionals of America union), reducing the hours of work for two guards in retaliation for their union efforts.
Two employees in the hospital's rehabilitation department were given unsatisfactory evaluations and later fired, one on July 5 and the other on June 29, for the same reason, the complaint said.
Finally, the hospital issued a downgraded performance report to a third employee of that department on July 10 for the same reason, the complaint said.
The complaint seeks to have their records cleared and jobs and work hours restored.