Planned Parenthood of Western Pennsylvania staff will hold mail-in ballot union vote

Planned Parenthood of Western Pennsylvania may soon join the growing number of newly unionized sectors in Pittsburgh.

At the end of January, WESA reported that 35 full and part-time staff members working at the organization's seven health centers filed a petition to hold a unionization vote. Now the group will hold a mail-in ballot election, with ballots being sent out on Thu., February 18, according to organizing member and PPWP health care assistant, Crystal Grabowski. Those ballots must be returned by Thu., March 11 to be counted.

The group includes health care assistants, clinicians, several registered nurses, and a variety of specialists, as well as a physician’s assistant, who represent PPWP offices in Pittsburgh and throughout the region. They presented a list of demands ranging from “better wages, benefits, and working conditions; improved staffing levels and staff to patient ratio; a voice on the job and improved communication; a grievance procedure and union representation; and prioritization of the health, safety, and wellness of staff.”

Grabowski says she and her co-workers started discussing a union in summer 2019 and decided to forge ahead when certain issues became heightened by the threat of COVID-19.

Read more: https://www.pghcitypaper.com/pittsburgh/planned-parenthood-of-western-pennsylvania-staff-will-hold-mail-in-ballot-union-vote/Content?oid=18930960