Indiana Regional Medical Center Nurse Files Federal Charges Against Union and Hospital

Union officials threaten worker to join union or lose her job

Indiana, PA (December 4, 2013) – An Indiana Regional Medical Center nurse has filed a federal unfair labor practice charge against her employer and a local nurse union for violating her rights.

With free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, Joanna Smith of Clymer filed the charge with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).

Starting in August 2003, Smith worked as a per diem float nurse, a position subject to the representation of the Indiana Registered Nurses Association (IRNA) Local 5120 union hierarchy. In June 2011, Smith was moved to a patient advocate position, which was not under the union monopoly bargaining control. Then, in November 2012, Smith returned to a float nurse position.

In her charge against the union, Smith alleges that in September 2013, an IRNA Local 5120 union official illegally demanded that she join the union as a condition of her employment.

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The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation is a nonprofit, charitable organization providing free legal aid to employees whose human or civil rights have been violated by compulsory unionism abuses. The Foundation, which can be contacted toll-free at 1-800-336-3600, assists thousands of employees in more than 250 cases nationwide per year.