California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee

Registered nurses at Endeavor Health Edward Hospital in Naperville, Illinois, petitioned the National Labor Relations Board seeking a date for union election.

The nurses are trying to join the National Nurses Organizing Committee, an affiliate of the National Nurses United.

the UAW secured their first contract at Volkswagen in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

This achievement marks a historic moment for the UAW's new local chapter, as this was their inaugural contract.

Hmm.

The one that we knew or, or were not as surprised was probably the most heavily lobbied bills of the session, and that was one put forward by, um, by the federation and the California Nurses Association.

And basically it had protections for nurses to override, um, AI and to not be subject to discipline if they override.

And the idea behind that is California, in our healthcare system, everybody who provides you care, who actually provides you direct care, has to have been trained.

The merger still requires approval from hospital regulators.

The National Nurses Organizing Committee pushed back on the announcement.

That union represents 2,000 nurses at Rush, and says 1,200 nurses at Endeavor's Edward Hospital just petitioned for an election.

Board member and Chicago nurse Brenda Langford said in a statement, quote, "Hospital mergers are big corporate transactions that result in higher prices, service cuts, and other moves to maximize profits.

The money will be used to make up for the massive, almost trillion-dollar cuts to Medicaid, called Medi-Cal in that state, that the Republicans' big, beautiful billionaires bill used to pay for their trillions in tax cuts for billionaires.

The California Democratic Party has formally endorsed Prop 40, along with the California Nurses Association and the state AFL-CIO, and if the state's Democratic politicians had backed the tax across the board, odds are very high it would pass in 42, which is now polling above 50%, would fail.

But Governor Gavin Newsom has come out against it, making an argument that dates back to the Reagan years.

If you tax, if you ask the morbidly rich to pay more in taxes, they'll simply leave the state.

I'm Angel with the Palestinian Youth Movement.

My name is Sydney Simpson, I'm with the California Nurses Association, National Nurses United, Executive Board of the San Francisco Labor Council.

I'm Darius, I'm with SEIU-USWW, Airport Workers United at Oakland Airport.

I'm Frankie Fridamos with Courage in Oakland.

But before we get there, let's take a look at some headlines for Thursday, October 8th.

Central Maine Medical Center is denying a National Nurses Organizing Committee announcement that it reinstated a nurse fired amid unionization efforts.

CMMC said it has not reinstated anyone from suspension or termination, and the matters remain under investigation.

The union said 14 firings came after nurses filed a National Labor Relations Board petition to hold a union election.

That's after what the union describes as a payroll mistake.

The California Nurses Association estimates the missed pay totals tens of millions of dollars.

The union is celebrating an arbitrator's resolution of the years-long dispute as a, quote, historic victory against wage theft.

In a statement, the healthcare giant said it disagrees with the union's characterization, but will honor its obligations under the arbitrator's decision.

The measure was sponsored by a union representing one hundred thousand nurses statewide, as NPR's Andrea Hsu reports.

The California Nurses Association says the new law gives patients and healthcare workers landmark protections against unsafe use of AI.

Among other things, it prohibits unlicensed staff from using AI to perform tasks that can only be done by licensed professionals.

The governor's office says the protections keep people, not algorithms, at the center of healthcare decisions.

NPR's Andrea Hsu reports the legislation was sponsored by a union representing a hundred thousand nurses statewide.

The California Nurses Association says the new law gives patients and healthcare workers landmark protections against unsafe use of AI.

Among other things, it prohibits unlicensed staff from using AI to perform tasks that can only be done by licensed professionals.

The governor's office says the protections keep people, not algorithms, at the center of healthcare decisions.