PORTLAND, Maine — Over the course of Aug. 17 and 18, about 1,400 nurses voted on whether to retain their union. This is the second time the nurses have had a vote in the last year and a half.
At that time, 57 percent of the nurses voted in favor of the union, but this week 74 percent of the nurses voted in favor of the union which means the union vote rose by a margin of 14 percent.
"We have been winning important improvements at the bargaining table over the past year,” Jonica Frank, an RN in the operating room and member of the union’s bargaining team, said in a press release. “Nurses across the hospital are excited about everything we have won so far.”
Nurses expect to finish bargaining their first contract in the next several weeks, according to a press release issued by the union.
In response to the vote, an official with Maine Medical Center released the following statement.
"For the past year, we have bargained in good faith with the union," Devin Carr, chief nursing officer, said. "Although Maine Medical Center has always believed that a direct relationship with our nursing team is the best possible way to achieve our shared goals, we respect our nurses and their choice to have union representation."
This story is developing and will be updated as information becomes available.