Campaign 2000

Getting out the vote at MMC

by Theresa Flaherty

While the presidential campaign limps on, unnoticed and uninspiring, a campaign of a different sort is heating up closer to home, and closer to the hearts of those involved. For the 1250 nurses at Maine Medical Center, election day is September 14, the day they vote on whether to unionize. And the campaigns are in full swing.

"It's time for nurses to stand up and speak as a unified voice," says Amy Strum, an emergency-room nurse and member of the union organizing committee. "What we're doing now is circulating a vote-yes petition, getting signatures to commit to a yes vote."

"I'm not sure why they're doing that," says Paula Squires, vice president of human resources at MMC. "I think it's important for people to vote privately."

Nurses in favor of unionizing kicked off their campaign at a rally in early July, after what Strum describes as a "healthy majority" of nurses signed union cards pledging their support. Frustrated with long hours, mandatory overtime, and the challenge of maintaining quality patient care even as patient loads increase, nurses at MMC had met with organizers from the Local 1989 of the Service Employees International Union, the nation's largest health-care union. For the most part, campaigning has been in the form of meetings, often held in private homes

"It's very much a grassroots effort, talking and communicating," says Strum. "Face to face communication."

An upcoming Labor Day rally in Portland, supporting Portland labor groups, promises to be music to the ears of pro-union nurses. As with their presidential counterparts, this campaign, too, has a song.

"A local musician, Phil Hoose, wrote us a song he'll be singing," says Strum. "It's a great rendition of an old Boston labor song." According to Strum, SEIU has lent support to nurse organizers and sent out weekly, informational newsletters.

So have anti-union nurses and the hospital administration which is not in favor of the union. A Website has also been set up called Nurse Choice (www.mmcnursechoice.org) to get out the anti-union message. Website features include testimonials and a "question of the day." (On August 29: "Which union lost a November 1999 election at Affiliated Laboratories in Bangor, Maine?" The answer -- big surprise -- "SEIU Local 1989.")

"We've been conducting educational sessions, giving them the pros and cons," says Squires. "It's really been an educational campaign."

As with any campaign, there are people happy with neither choice. In response, some nurses have formed a group that seeks to establish a Nurse Advocate Board, a group MMC administration supports.

"They're looking for alternatives," argues Squires. "It's in response to the union vote. It's truly coming from the nurses." The board would work with administration and nurses to respond to issues of concern. However, until the union vote takes place, the hospital cannot legally discuss the model for the board.

Regardless of the outcome on September 14, it is clear changes and communication are needed to create a healthier environment for everyone. But the MMC campaign argues that even the union vote itself is detrimental, creating additional tension for nurses already working under great pressure.

"The majority of the pressure is coming from management's campaign against us unionizing," counters Strum.