Mayo Mankato nurses vote to end union association

Nurses at Mayo Clinic Mankato voted Tuesday to decertify their union.

In a 213-181 vote, the nurses moved to cut ties with the Minnesota Nurses Association Union, which has represented Mayo for more than seven decades.  The union represents more than 22,000 nurses throughout the state.

Tammie Fromm, an Operating Room RN at Mayo Clinic Mankato, released the following statement through the MNA:

“For decades, since long before Mayo Health System purchased our community’s hospital, nurses here have proudly stood together to fight for better conditions for local workers and patients in our hospitals. Despite our efforts, local nurses faced a highly powered, well-funded outside national organization bent on undermining worker power and collective bargaining rights.

“This is a staff-led effort, and we are grateful for the confidence our nursing staff has in Mayo Clinic Health System,” Mayo Clinic said in a statement.  “We look forward to working with them directly.”

The Minnesota Reformer reports the effort was led by the stepdaughter of Glen Taylor and the National Right to Work Foundation.