Trinity Health ordered to reinstate union at Grand Haven hospital

Trinity Health is considering legal action to uphold the withdrawal of union recognition at its Grand Haven hospital and challenge an administrative judge’s ruling that the health system violated federal labor laws.

Administrative Judge Michael Rosas’ September 6 decision in a case brought last spring The National Labor Relations Board has ordered Trinity Health Grand Haven to reinstate recognition of SEIU Healthcare Michigan and immediately resume negotiations on a contract for 182 employees.

However, Trinity Health continues to claim it legally withdrew recognition of the bargaining unit in August 2023 after receiving a letter signed by employees stating they no longer supported the union.

“We have done our best to act in accordance with what we believe are our obligations to our colleagues under the law, and we are prepared to test that with the Federal Labor Relations Board if that is what SEIU chooses to do,” the Catholic health system said in a statement. “Trinity Health Michigan is prepared to go, not only to the NLRB in its entirety, but also to the courts to defend our actions and those of our colleagues.”

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The administrative judge’s decision marked the latest twist in a contentious labor dispute that began in November 2022 when Trinity Health Grand Haven workers voted to join SEIU Healthcare Michigan. The vote came just weeks after Trinity Health completed its acquisition of the former North Ottawa Community Health System.

The 182-member bargaining unit included diagnostic imaging technicians, laboratory assistants and technologists, housekeepers, dietary workers, social workers, unit clerks, patient care associates, physicians and other positions.

The labor dispute included a one day strike and a decertification election in September 2023 that the union won by 89 votes to 66, where The counting of ballots has been delayed. Trinity Health Grand Haven then withdrew his recognition of the bargaining unit after receiving the letter signed by 94 employees, although Rosas’ decision noted that only 48 signatures appeared on pages that clearly stated the reason for the letter.

Trinity Health Grand Haven withdrew its certification in the week between the Sept. 18-19 decertification vote and the NLRB’s Sept. 29 delay in counting ballots. The delay came when the union objected to the ballot count because unfair labor practice charges against Trinity Health Grand Haven were still pending. The union withdrew its block on the ballot count a few days later.

In his 63-page decision, Rosas wrote that “it is clear” that former Trinity Health Grand Haven President Shelleye Yaklin, who retired in April, “illegally withdrew her recognition based on a disaffection petition containing only 48 signatures on four pages explicitly stating that the employees no longer wanted to be represented by the (union), far short of the 81 employees needed to demonstrate a loss of majority support.”

Rosas also wrote that Trinity Health Grand Haven “engaged in a series of unfair labor practices throughout the negotiations that undoubtedly fomented the discontent that led to the withdrawal of its recognition on September 28.” This includes canceling an August 2023 bargaining session, “disparaging the (union) toward employees,” unilaterally changing employee policies and excluding bargaining unit employees from a 2.5% wage increase.

“Bad faith bargaining tactics inevitably contributed to employee disaffection with the union,” Rosas wrote. “… The filing of the disaffection petition was preceded by months of unfair labor practices, including bad faith bargaining by (Trinity Health Grand Haven), its denigration of the (union), and threats to employees if they went on strike. There is no credible evidence that the (union) began to lose support for any reason other than its continued denigration by (Trinity Health Grand Haven).”

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