According to the Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA), nurses and healthcare workers at the Essentia Miller Hill Surgery Center and at the Essentia Solvay Hospice house have filed for an election with the National Labor Relations Board to form a union represented by the MNA.

Workers at each facility state that they are having issues surrounding working conditions, scheduling, and patient care conditions. These issues brought about the idea of unionization at each location.

“I want to protect what Solvay was originally built for—a place where hospice patients and their loved ones can receive skilled and compassionate end of life care from highly knowledgeable, dedicated, and empathetic staff, said Kimberly Volkart, a registered nurse at Essentia Solvay Hospice House. “I feel that unionizing is the best way to not only preserve the integrity of Solvay and the high quality of care we provide, but also to protect the heart and soul of Solvay: the staff.” 

At Essentia Solvay Hospice House, all workers, including Registered Nurses, Licensed Practical Nurses, Nursing Assistants, Administrative Assistants, Environmental Services workers, and Cooks, filed for a union election whereas at the Surgical Center, only Registered Nurses were a part of the filing.

“There needs to be guidelines in place for mandatory time off on low-needs days.  Nurses are not guaranteed their Full-Time Equivalencies (FTEs), and there needs to be a limit on the amount of time off Essentia is mandating,” said Cindy Proulx, registered nurse at the Essentia Surgery Center, speaking on some of the issues nurses are experiencing.  

The elections for each facility will likely be scheduled in the coming weeks.