Nearly 200 workers across four Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts (PPLM) clinics in Boston, Worcester, Marlborough and Springfield have qualified to hold an election to unionize.
If a majority of the Planned Parenthood healthcare assistants, registered nurses, patient navigators, educators, tele-health workers, and nurse-midwives vote to unionize, they will join 1199SEIU, United Healthcare Workers East.
SEIU currently represents nearly 1,000 Planned Parenthood workers across New York, Maine, Washington D.C., and Colorado.
“As healthcare access is restricted across the country, Massachusetts will see an influx of patients from other states, and we need to be ready. To get ready, those of us who are on the ground doing the work, need to be supported on every level – to be seen and heard. That’s why PPLM staff are uniting – a union is how we fight back stronger,” said Cara Callahan, a PPLM continuity of care patient navigator in Springfield.
At the time of publication, the National Labor Relations Board has not set the date for the union election.
