Allina Healthcare workers vote to unionize, join Doctors Council SEIU

Doctors and other health care workers at Allina Health voted on Friday to unionize with the Doctors Council SEIU with 325 voting employees voting in favor and 200 employees voting against.

The union said their goal is to help physicians “gain a voice in the workplace regarding patient care and to be able to negotiate the conditions they work under.”

This move, which was first filed back in August, forms the largest private-sector clinician union in the country.

RELATED: Allina doctors file to form what would be largest private-sector clinician union in US

This comes after a deal to avoid a strike was reached between Allina Health and SEIU Healthcare Minnesota & Iowa earlier this year.

Allina Health released the following statement in response to the vote:

“Allina Health is first and foremost deeply appreciative of the exceptional care our providers deliver to patients every day. We are also proud of our ongoing work regarding employee well-being. Allina Health has been nationally recognized as one of the top places to work in health care, with special attention for our efforts to support employee mental health.“

“While we are disappointed in the decision by some of our providers to be represented by a union, we remain committed to our ongoing work to create a culture where all employees feel supported and valued. Our focus now is on moving forward to ensure the best interests of our employees, patients and the communities we serve.“

Allina Health

The statement from Doctors Council adds that this vote coincidentally happened the same day an agreement was reached between Kaiser Permanente and unions representing 75,000 health care workers.

A copy of the full statement from Doctors Council can be found below: