nurse at Seton Medical Center was fired for posting on Facebook about the violation of her rights by the hospital manager
In this article, a nurse at Seton Medical Center was fired for posting on Facebook about the violation of her rights by the hospital manager. According to the article, the nurse was forced to report to work on Mother’s Day even after a 17-percent pay deduction. This action annoyed the nurse, and she wrote an angry post on Facebook, expressing her dissatisfaction in hospital management. The hospital workers, including the manager, read the post and decided to terminate her contract the following day for disobeying the orders issued by the hospital. The nurse decided to report the matter to the court, accusing the hospital manager of violating her freedom of speech right stipulated in the California Constitution. However, the hospital dismissed the claims, which forced the court to grant a motion (Lewis, 2013). In the case involving the nurse and the hospital, the breach of contract claim was disbanded for failure to exhaust the expected contractual remedies based on the collective bargaining agreement.
From the above scenario, several labor ramifications are involved. For instance, the hospital manager needed to respect the employee’s right of expression. According to the labor laws, an employee has the freedom to express her voice either in written or orally detailing the matters that affect him or her. The nurse’s action to post her sentiments on Facebook about the hospital was not a violation, and the manager was required to treat the post as a private issue. Employees should not be silenced by their employers while trying to share the things that affect them. Putting it in public helps the employee express matters of concern in which the hospital should respond appropriately. The nurse was forced to report to work on a public holiday, which honors mothers across the world. The hospital needed to give the nurse time to celebrate the holiday since it is meant for mothers across the globe.
The union protecting the employees should, at all times, engage the employers to respect the rights of employees. According to the case, the employer accused the nurse of failing to express her grievances through the union. However, there are matters which may require personal involvement and expression. Any person is allowed to express his or her issues on any platform to seek for public intervention. The hospital manager wanted to limit the nurse from using her Facebook to express her thoughts about the decision made by the hospital. According to the cited section of the California Constitution, a person can speak freely by writing or publishing content that expresses his or her abuse of rights. The nurse used her social media to share with the public about the actions of the hospital, which were seen as an abuse of her rights (Ristau, 2012). In this regard, the nurse was right to go ahead and write her sentiments regarding the hospital. However, the manager’s actions on the following day were yet another violation of the nurse’s right to express freely. The nurse was supposed to be given notice prior to firing.
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procedure due to certain flaws in her union’s representation because she failed to allege the union breached its duty of fair representation.
Healthcare leaders should make some considerations before making a decision. For instance, they need to provide favorable working conditions for their employees to ensure that they are not affected in any way. Healthcare leaders should train the employees regarding the expected labor practices and standards that would not lead to violations of rights. Employees working in healthcare organizations should be aware of their rights and comply with the rules and regulations that guide operations within the facility. Healthcare leaders should respect employees’ rights to show compliance with the labor laws (Westra & Delaney, 2008). For instance, firing employees without solid reasons and the expected procedure may be termed as violations of their rights, as seen in the above case. It is important for healthcare leaders to make decisions within the law to avoid unnecessary violation of the employee’s rights. Consistent violations by the healthcare leaders may result in malpractices and unethical and illegal issues that distort the facility’s image.