Protect employment rights and secure terms and conditions of employment to attract and retain qualified personnel. Advocating for quality care is becoming increasingly difficult for nurses in today's environment of restructuring and mergers, where cost often comes before quality care. Many nurses find that working collectively, through a contract, to ensure a voice in the workplace is one of the most effective ways to protect themselves, their profession, and their patients. Collective bargaining is the most effective way you and your nurse colleagues can protect patients from inadequate and unsafe care. Collective bargaining is professional .
Nurses have a legal right to use the collective bargaining process to protect their professionalism.
ANA, in its capacity as a union and professional association of nurses provides the most effective representation for the profession . No other union has ANA's experience or depth in addressing the important unique needs of nurses. Benefits of collective bargaining are embedded in having a mutually agreed upon, legally binding contract between your employer and your bargaining unit that gives nurses a voice in decision-making. The contract prevents arbitrary decisions by the employer and enforces your right to participate in determining wages, hours of work, standards of practice, pension and benefits, and all other terms of employment. ANA believes that the professional nurse has the right to participate in the decision-making process affecting the nurse as an employee and as a professional.