WASHINGTON D.C. - Tens of thousands of nurses, including Filipino Americans, are considered by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) as ‘supervisors’ and therefore not eligible to be represented by labor unions.

On October 3, the NLRB ruled that nurses with fulltime responsibility for assigning fellow hospital workers to particular tasks are supervisors  under the federal labor law and therefore not eligible to join unions.

The ruling by a vote of 3 to 2 (the three appointed by President Bush and the two dissenters by President Clinton), was hailed by businesses and roundly criticized by labor unions and other activists.

The Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, AFL-CIO (APALA) condemned the decision to expand the definition of a supervisor and strip millions of workers of the right to form a union.

APALA said Asian and Pacific Islander American workers would be particularly impacted by this decision because so many are concentrated in the nursing and professional occupations that are likely to lose organizing rights.

The NLRB ruling was on a case involving nurses, but would pave the way for employers to classify anyone who assigns work, directs another, or uses independent judgment as a supervisor, which would mean they are ineligible to form a union.

Registered Nurses often give instructions to nurse aides, they would be classified as supervisors. Even if the workers  spend as little as 10-15% of their time on directing others, they could be still be considered “supervisors.” In addition to nurses, many other jobs in which experienced or skilled workers lead teams of other workers could also be re-classified as “supervisory.”

In the building trades, journeymen direct apprentices or workers on a crew. Professionals could also be classified as “supervisors” because the very nature of professional work frequently involves directing others and exercising independent judgment.

Over 2 million Asian and Pacific Islander Americans could be denied the right to form a union. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 1.9 million APIAs work as professionals, including 155,000 who work as registered nurses. About 110,000 work in construction.

APALA National President Maria Somma stated, “Asian and Pacific Islander American workers want to form unions to improve the quality of life for their families, protect their rights, and have a voice at work. Our numbers in unions have increased for two years in row because of the many successes in organizing workers in industries such as health care. This ruling cuts off a crucial pathway to economic justice for Asian and Pacific Islander American workers. The right to form unions is a basic human right recognized around the world. It’s an outrage that it is not being recognized right here in America.”

MANILA – A Cabinet decision for nurses to retake the  nursing  licensure exams has been held in abeyance by President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.

The Cabinet earlier said all those who took this year’s nursing licensure exams -both passers and flunkers -will have to retake the tests after the Cabinet decided it is the only way to remove the doubt cast on the results by those who had cheated, an official said.

More than 17,000 of the 40,000 nurses that took the tests in June passed, but the results were tainted after officials discovered that test questions had been leaked to some of the examinees.

“Obviously, those who participated in the cheating should retake the exams, but we do not know who they are," Labor Secretary Arturo Brion said.

“But for those who did not cheat, this is a way to erase the taint over their passing."

Brion, who was recently ordered to oversee the Professional Regulation Commission, the agency administering the tests, said the retake would likely be held in December simultaneously with the next regular nursing exams.

But he doubted if the new tests would take place ahead of the regular exams because there were many vacancies in the board of nursing licensure tests that had yet to be filled by President Gloria Macagapal Arroyo.

Brion said the retake would cover only Tests 3 and 5, the tests were some of the questions had been leaked, and at no cost to examinees. The President has set aside P52 million for the exams, although the commission has said they will cost only P14 million.