North Bay Business Journal

Memorial Hospital election set after long union battle

SANTA ROSA, NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – The last-minute scheduling of a union election for about 600 Memorial hospital workers came as a bitter-sweet surprise last Monday morning, even within the context of a high-pitched battle between two Northern California unions.

Sonoma Mountain Village, labor, environmental coaliton reach agreement on development

ROHNERT PARK — The developer of Sonoma Mountain Village and a coalition of labor, housing and environmental groups have reached an agreement to cooperate on labor standards, housing, regional impact of development and green building standards for the innovative project on the 200-acre former Agilent Technologies site.

In the works for more than two years, the “Community Benefits Agreement” is the first of its kind between a developer and the Accountable Development Coalition.

Health care unions clash

SANTA ROSA – With a six-year unionization effort at stake, Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital has become a battlefield in a rivalry between national labor giant Service Employees International Union and a fledgling group of its former Northern California leaders.
In April, about 600 hospital nursing assistants, respiratory therapists, radiology and other health care-related technicians were on track to schedule a union election under a petition with the new group, the National Union of Healthcare Workers. But at the final hour, SEIU intervened and stalled proceedings.