COUNTY COUNCIL OF BALTIMORE COUNTY, MARYLAND

Legislative Session 2010, Legislative Day No. 11

Resolution No. 48-10

Sponsored by: Councilmembers Bartenfelder, Kamenetz, Olszewski & Oliver

By the County Council, June 7, 2010

A RESOLUTION of the Baltimore County Council urging Baltimore County healthcare institutions and employers to support family-sustaining jobs with advancement opportunities for healthcare workers and the right of these workers to a fair union election.

WHEREAS, one in five jobs in the Baltimore metropolitan area is in the healthcare industry and the quality of jobs in this industry helps determine the economic health of our county overall; and

WHEREAS, Baltimore County is home to many healthcare institutions where the quality of care they offer is closely connected to the quality of the jobs for the workers who provide that care; and

WHEREAS, although healthcare workers day after day care for the sick, people with disabilities, seniors, and our most vulnerable residents, many of these workers do not make a living wage, have little access to training and educational advancement, have no job security, cannot retire with dignity, and are unable to afford healthcare for themselves or their children; and

WHEREAS, many healthcare workers have expressed an interest in unionizing for a voice so they are better able to deliver quality care, advocate for their patients’ interests, engage civilly in healthcare policy, and lift the standard of living for their children and families; and

WHEREAS, healthcare employers receive generous taxpayer funding in exchange for playing a responsible civic role and for spending taxpayer resources on patient care, and the mission of these employers, in turn, should be one of solidarity with the very employees that provide the foundation of their institutions.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNTY COUNCIL OF

BALTIMORE COUNTY, MARYLAND, that the Council hereby calls upon Baltimore County healthcare institutions and healthcare employers to agree to a free and fair union election code of conduct, so that workers can make their own decisions in a fair secret ballot election vote.