Medical residents with Brown University Health, formerly called Lifespan, have formed a doctors’ union at Rhode Island Hospital.
In a small fluorescent-lit room in the Thomas J. O’Neill, Jr. federal building in Boston Tuesday afternoon, National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) employees spent more than 90 minutes opening envelopes and counting ballots.
When it came time to place the hot pink ballots in yes and no piles, organizers and attorneys with the Committee of Residents and Interns Union under the Service Employees International Union, or CIR-SEIU, leaned in to watch.
The yes piles grew to include hundreds of votes, with a final tally of 464 yes votes and 27 no votes out of the 689 employees the NLRB considers eligible. According to the NLRB, there were two void ballots and 196 physicians who did not mail in their ballots.
The union will now represent all Brown University Health residents who are employed by Rhode Island Hospital, whether or not they voted yes. CIR-SEIU says the union believes it is the first doctors’ union in the state.
In an emailed response, a spokesperson with Brown University Health said “We appreciate all who made their voices heard through this election and look forward to working with CIR in good faith while best serving our patients and communities.” The union went to a vote because Rhode Island Hospital did not voluntarily recognize residents as a union.
This story was reported by The Public's Radio. You can read the entire story here.
