(THE SOUTHERN TIER) - On the eve of a scheduled hearing by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) into charges of management misconduct, Union and hospital officials have agreed to hold a new election among Registered Nurses (RNs) in the TLC Health Network to determine whether Registered Nurses (RNs) can form a Union, 1199 SEIU (Service Employees International Union) United Healthcare Workers East representatives announced today.  

Results of a November 5th election conducted by the NLRB were not made official because of the number of challenged ballots.  The TLC Health Network is composed of Lake Shore Health Care Center in Irving and Tri-County Hospital in Gowanda.  It is also part of the Lake Erie Regional Health Care System, which includes Brooks Memorial Hospital in Dunkirk.

In the aftermath of the election, nurses supporting Unionization filed a series of charges with the NLRB alleging management misconduct that included threats, intimidation and voting procedure irregularities.  

As such, the NLRB had scheduled a hearing for Monday, December 14th to take testimony on the charges.  In view of the pending hearing, TLC management officials agreed to a rerun election with the Union, 1199 SEIU officials said.  The new election has been scheduled for January 7th and will be run by the NLRB.

1199 SEIU represents 7,000 hospital workers across Western New York, including Union Members employed at the TLC Health Network's Brooks Memorial Hospital and Lake Shore Nursing Home.  The 1199 SEIU Nurse Council of Western New York was formed by RNs who work at Women and Children's Hospital of Buffalo, the Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center, Mount St. Mary's Hospital, Medina Memorial Hospital and Eastern Niagara Hospital.