Registered nurses at Adventist Health St. Helena have voted to unionize, handing a decisive win to the California Nurses Association in a federally supervised election that sets the stage for first-time contract talks. Union leaders say the outcome reflects growing concerns about staffing and patient care across the Adventist system, while hospital officials say they are still working through the formal federal review process before the results are finalized.
According to The Press Democrat, 154 registered nurses voted in favor of joining the union and 52 voted against, a tally the union described as more than 74 percent support. The outlet reported that the ballots were counted following a National Labor Relations Board election held on Thursday and that the union expects to represent roughly 250 RNs at the hospital.
Federal Filings And What They Show
The National Labor Relations Board case page for St. Helena Hospital (Case No. 20‑RC‑388860) states that the petition was filed on June 15 and lists 230 registered nurses as included in the bargaining unit. The NLRB docket shows that a formal notice of election was issued in mid-July. If no challenges succeed, the agency will certify the result and Adventist Health St. Helena will be legally required to bargain with the newly certified representative.
A Broader Organizing Push At Adventist Health
The St. Helena vote is part of a wider wave of organizing at Adventist Health facilities, where CNA/NNU has been steadily building its presence. Public statements from National Nurses United indicate that CNA/NNU already represents nurses at multiple Adventist hospitals on the Central Coast and has secured contracts and workplace protections at several locations, giving St. Helena nurses a clear roadmap of what union representation can look like inside the same health system.
Hospital Response And Next Steps
In a memo to staff cited by The Press Democrat, Adventist Health St. Helena President Dr. Steven Herber told employees the election results will not be final for at least seven days while the system reviews the outcome under federal procedures. On the union side, leaders say they will hold a post-election meeting on Aug. 12 and note that their organizing committee includes hundreds of Adventist nurses across California, a network they say will be tapped to support St. Helena staff as they move into bargaining.
