WORCESTER, Mass. - The past few months have been up and down for Richard Avola.

“It’s an emotional rollercoaster, like anything,” Avola said. “I’d be lying if I said to you every day is a yes, yes, yes.”

He’s a nurse at Saint Vincent Hospital and is leading the effort to get the Massachusetts Nurses Association decertified as a union at the hospital.

“Why do we need someone to collect our voices to present it to the hospital,” Avola said. “Why can’t we just do that ourselves?”

Ballots went out to over 900 nurses on Feb. 4. Avola said he still believes nurses are better off working with the hospital without a union in their way. The hospital hired him while hundreds of MNA members were on strike.

“Think of any relationship in your life and you have to have a middle party to help you navigate the issues,” Avola said. “A party that says we will get back to you in a couple of weeks.” 

What You Need To Know

  • Nurses at St. Vincent Hospital must decide if they want the Massachusetts Nurses Association to continue to represent them
  • Richard Avola was hired during the strike and said he believes nurses can work with the hospital better without a union representing them
  • The National Labor Relations Board is overseeing the election and must receive all ballots by Friday, Feb. 25
  • The MNA has previously told Spectrum News 1 they are confident they will continue to represent nurses

The election comes after MNA members went on strike for over 300 days. The union has been at the hospital for over 20 years and has previously told Spectrum News 1 they are confident they will continue to represent nurses. 

Ballots must arrive by Friday to be counted. Avola encourages any nurse, regardless of their opinion, to vote. 

“Call the NLRB. Have them overnight you a ballot. You will have to overnight it back,” Avola said. “I’m not saying for or against the decertification, I’m just saying in general. Your vote does matter.”

The National Labor Relations Board is overseeing the election and is expected to count ballots on Feb 28. Spectrum News 1 reached out to the hospital about the vote, but they did not want to comment.