Illinois Hospital Association

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August 23, 2007

Urge your U.S. Representative to Oppose H.R. 1644 –Bill Would Remove Supervisory Status of Charge Nurses for Collective Bargaining Purposes

When Congress returns in September, the House Education and Labor Committee is expected to consider legislation that would make charge nurses eligible for a hospital’s collective bargaining unit and subject to union rules and disciplines. This bill would undercut hospitals’ ability to depend on charge nurse supervisors to help ensure continuity of patient care.

Action:
Please contact your U.S. Representative now and urge him/her to oppose H.R. 1644 because:
  • H.R. 1644, the Re-empowerment of Skilled and Professional Employees and Construction and Tradeworkers Act, would remove charge nurses from being considered as "supervisors" for collective bargaining purposes. This change would undercut the ability of those nurses to represent the hospital before patients, families and other staff, and to ensure that patients get the care they need from the most qualified hospital staff.
  • National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) guidance recognizes that charge nurses exercise independence and discretion in making critical judgments.
  • The current National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) definition of "supervisory" and the NLRB guidance set clear criteria for determining whether a charge nurse is a "supervisor." The changes made by H.R. 1644 would alter the supervisory status of charge nurses, and in doing so, could compromise hospitals’ ability to provide patients the care they need.
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    To send an e-mail message directly to your Representative click here.

    Background:
    H.R. 1644, would remove from the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) two functions that currently classify a charge nurse as a supervisor: "assigning" and "responsibly directing" other staff.

    Charge nurses are often highly visible staff "in charge" of a hospital unit, acting during a crisis or conflict and providing a management voice to patients, families and other employees. Their judgment and discretion are essential to the delivery of patient care. If H.R. 1644 is enacted, charge nurses no longer would be exclusively the employer’s voice in labor-management relations during union organizing campaigns, grievances and labor disputes. Even in daily operations, charge nurses who under current law qualify as supervisors would lose that status for collective bargaining purposes and become subject to union control, work rules, fines and other forms of union discipline for crossing a picket line or continuing to work during a work shortage. Hospitals need management flexibility in designating "supervisors" to ensure that an adequate number of qualified staff is available to care for patients. Act now in urging your Representative to oppose this bill.