NEW YORK NURSE: July/August 2008
At its June meeting the NYSNA Board of Directors voted to establish an Election Committee, which will be responsible for reviewing any protests related to association-wide elections.
The committee will consist of five members, with three elected and two appointed. It will meet whenever a protest is filed, either before or after the election. Election of members of the Election Committee will take place during the 2009 association-wide election. If a protest is filed this year, a five-member committee will be appointed by the Board of Directors.
Protests about the conduct of an election must be filed in writing with the Election Committee. A pre-election protest must be filed within 72 hours of a possible election violation and a post-election protest must be filed within 15 days of the announcement of election results.
Generally, protests are filed over improper campaigning activities by candidates for office or irregularities in the conduct of an election. A protest over the 2007 NYSNA election was filed last fall with the U.S. Department of Labor; a judgment is expected soon. Having an internal process for investigating election protests will make it possible for problems to be identified and corrected more quickly.
The committee will investigate each protest and make a judgment as to whether it has merit. If it does, the committee will determine a remedy for the improper election activity. In an extreme case where the outcome of an election was affected by an improper action, the committee may recommend that a rerun election be held.
Members who are not satisfied with decisions of the Election Committee may demand a hearing before an Appeals Committee. This three-member committee is appointed by the NYSNA president and must be impartial. Its decisions are final and binding.