A large and powerful new union has formed from the merger of three nursing associations to create the 150,000 member United American Nurses-National Nurses Organizing Committee, UAN-NNOC (AFL-CIO). According to a joint statement issued by the United American Nurses, California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee, and the Massachusetts Nurses Association, the goals of this new union are to:

• Build a Registered Nurses (RN) movement in order to defend and advance the interests of direct care nurses across the country;
• Organize all non-union direct care RNs (a substantial majority of the budget shall be dedicated to new organizing);
• Provide a powerful national voice for RN rights, safe RN practice, including RN-to-patient staffing ratios under the principle that safe staffing saves lives, and health care justice;
• Provide a vehicle for solidarity with sister nurse and allied organizations around the world;
• Create a national Taft-Hartley pension for union RNs.

Now the largest nurses’ labor union, the UAN-NNOC will have the clout and finances to pursue its “guiding principle” that all registered nurses be represented by an RN union.

For more information on this development, see Littler's ASAP:  Major Merger of Nursing Unions to Shake Up Health Care by Anita M. Polli, John D. Doran, Jenna S. Barresi, and Jennifer L. Mora.