Amicus Brief: ANA and UAN File Brief With NLRB Regarding Definition of "Supervisor"

The American Nurses Association and its affiliate, United American Nurses, AFL-CIO, collaborated on an amicus (friend of the court) brief filed with the National Labor Relations Board on September 22 2003, regarding its current review of the statutory definition of "supervisor." The Board asked for briefs to address how and whether employees use "independent judgment" and "assign and direct" work so as to be viewed as supervisors that must be excluded from bargaining units. Two of the three cases that the Board is focusing on involved nurses.

ANA and UAN addressed from a policy perspective the impact of the potential exclusion of RNs who work as charge nurses or who delegate work to unlicensed assistive personnel. The amicus brief cited the literature that highlights that positive working conditions are an important piece of addressing the nursing shortage. In addition, many workplace gains have been acquired through collective bargaining. Given the historical support for the ability of professional nurses to organize, the ANA and UAN urged the Board to adopt an interpretation of the law that recognized the professional norms of nursing, which through state laws and the Code of Ethics for Nurses, authorize and require delegation to others on the nursing team without the employer giving nurses true managerial prerogatives associated with supervisory status.

For more information, contact ANA General Counsel, Alice Bodley, ext. 7127 or Abodley@ana.org. Read the brief [PDF format]

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