Nurses at Essentia Health-Duluth Clinic 2nd Street vote unanimously for union with MNA

Nurses win union election, and will bargain collectively for better patient care and nurse working conditions

, and Editor

February 29, 2024 . 4:42 PM

3 min read

Nurses at Essentia Health-Duluth Clinic 2nd Street today celebrated a unanimous vote to form a union, represented by the Minnesota Nurses Association. Nurses filed for election in late January and cast their ballots today.

“We are excited to be union nurses and to gain a voice in our workplace so that we can continue to provide high-quality, safe patient care,” said Holly Swedberg, a registered nurse at Duluth Clinic 2nd Street. “As we take the next steps toward negotiating our first contract, we look forward to a more equitable, respectful workplace and to develop solutions that will help recruit and retain nurses at our clinic.”

Nurses at Essentia Health-Duluth Clinic 2nd Street saw the need to unionize to be able to collaboratively negotiate employment terms, work conditions, and patient care standards, leading to greater job satisfaction, nurse retention, and quality patient care.

The new MNA member nurses at Duluth Clinic 2nd Street join nurses at the Allina Health Cancer Institute who also voted to unionize with MNA this week, as well as their fellow nurses at Essentia Health-Duluth Clinic 1st Street who voted to join MNA earlier this month. The nurses join the 22,000-strong members of MNA in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, and North Dakota.

Essentia East Market Advanced Practice Providers have also filed for a union election with the National Labor Relations Board to unionize with MNA and are working to get to a vote despite continued resistance and roadblocks from Essentia executives.

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