California hospital settles with Asian/American nurses

National Nurses Association

During the labor dispute, the nurses received national attention and support.

TWO ASIAN/AMERICAN nurses got their jobs back after being fired by a Calfornia hospital for their union organizing.

Rather than proceed with a hearing with the National Labor Relations Board, Huntington Hospital in Pasadena, Calif. opted to settle with the nurses, Allysha Almada Shin and Vicki Lin, who were represented by the California Nurses Association.

RELATED: Filipina nurse speaks out for workers' rights

“This settlement is such a milestone — not just for me and Vicki as we receive our full back pay and have our terminations rescinded — but also for all the RNs who work at Huntington to feel empowered moving forward, knowing their voices cannot be silenced,” said Almada Shin, who has since found a job with a different hospital.

Part of the settlement negates a 2015 election in which the hospital's nurses voted against unionization and mandates that a new election be held within 60 days.

The Huntington nurses began their union organizing in May of 2014 after hospital management allegedly rejected the nurses’ attempts to engage them on patient care, staffing and other health issues.

The labor board issued a formal complaint against the hospital in early March for multiple and repeated labor violations, including the termination of employment for Lin and Almada Shin. The complaint alleged the hospital blocked off-duty employees and union representatives access to the hospital, interrogated employees about their efforts to unionize, barred workers from talking about misconduct and used “surveillance” to monitor employees pushing for unionization.

RELATED: NLRB sides with nurses vs. hospital

The situation drew national attention and an invitation last year to the White House for Allysha Almada Shin to take part in the White House Summit on Worker Voice.

The NLRB entered the labor dispute last January and sided with the nurses.

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For more news about Asian/Americans & Pacific Islanders, read AsAm News

Widower can't collect $6.5 million for wife's death in burning limo

FORD Motor Co. on May 25th, was cleared of any responsibility for a limousine that burst into flames killing five Filipinas, all members of a wedding party.

Aldrin and Felomina Geronga

The blame belonged to the limousine company, argued Ford's attorneys. The limo owners allowed nine passengers despite  the recommended capacity of eight. 

The jury decided that the limo company should pay $6.5 million to the plaintiff Aldrin Geronga, the widower of nurse Felomina Geronga, who died in the blazing vehicle three years ago. However, he will not see a penny. The limo owners had already settled with all the plaintiffs, including Aldrin Geronga, so they could not be penalized a second time.

Geronga's lawyer, William Smith, said he will appeal.

The limousine was carrying the women across the San Mateo-Hayward Bridge on their way to a bachelorette party for Fojas who was going to the Philippines for the wedding ceremony. when the limo caught fire. 

Four of the women escaped by crawling to the driver's seat through a small partition. But the bride-to-be, Felomina Geronga and three others - Jennifer Balon, 39, Michelle Estrera, 35, Anna Alcantara, 46 - didn't make it out.

All the women were nurses, part of the Filipino Diaspora that has thousands of Filipino workers, especially those in the medical field, leaving the Philippines every day for employment opportunities throughout the world. 

Aldrin Geronga was the last plaintiff in the case. He had reached an undisclosed settlement with other defendants in the case besides Ford. The survivors as well as the families of the other women who perished settled with Ford earlier.

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For more news about Asian/Americans & Pacific Islanders, read AsAm News.

NLRB sides with Asian/American nurses fired from California hospital

Nurses Vicki Lin and Aliysha Almada.

THE NATIONAL Labor Relations Board (NLRB) agreed Jan. 29 with two Asian/American nurses who filed a complaint against their former employer, Huntington Hospital, claiming they were fired for their efforts to unionize.

The decision by the NLRB means that Huntington Memorial Hospital in Pasadena, California must now reach an agreement with Allysha Almada and Vicki Lin, or the NLRB will file a formal complaint that could result in a hearing before an Administrative Law Judge.

“Thank you Huntington Nurses for all your support over the past few months. It took a while to get here, but finally, justice has been served! I’m ready to go back to work and help us all gain the job security we deserve!" said Almada.

The hospital sounds like it is prepared to let the NLRB process proceed.

“We stand by our decision and course of actions — and believe they are in accordance with employment laws, our employment practices and in the best interests of maintaining patient safety and providing the highest quality of patient care,” said Derek Clark, Huntington Hospital’s spokesman.

RELATED: Filipina nurse goes to the White House to speak on workers' rights

Almada and Lin say they want to be reinstated with backpay for the months they spent without work. The two women were fired in August last year. 

In October 2015, Almada took her fight to the national level when she was invited to Washington D.C. to participate in the White House Summit on Worker Voice, where she met with President Obama and Sen. Bernie Sanders.

"Firing workers because they choose to exercise their collective bargaining rights is not only appalling, but, as the NLRB decision shows, is also an egregious violation of federal labor laws," said Rep. Judy Chu, who supported the efforts of the nurses. 


“What happened to me can happen to anyone," said Lin. "We need union representation to protect our rights along with our patients. Nurses need job protection. We need someone to advocate for us.” 

For more news about Asian/Americans & Pacific Islanders, read AsAm News.

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