Monongalia County EMS (Mon EMS) employees successfully voted to unionize under the International Association of EMTs and Paramedics (IAEP) this February, officially becoming the first IAEP unit in the state of West Virginia.
With this win, Mon EMS employees gain the right to a voice in the workplace, the right to bargain, and the right to be able to affect change within their organization without fear of retaliation.
Although the entire campaign took less than 60 days, much effort went on behind the scenes to make Mon EMS’s win possible. The Mon EMS organizing committee and IAEP legal team worked tirelessly to file motions, answer employee questions, provide crucial updates, and keep campaign momentum going.
IAEP National Representative and Organizer Clinton Faulkner, who also assisted on the campaign, said that these actions helped to show Mon EMS employees that the IAEP meant business and wasn’t just another management puppet.
“We even stopped another union from attempting to halt the election and cause even more chaos to occur and potentially derail the whole process,” said Faulkner of the organizing efforts. “No matter what the employer tried to do, these folks saw through the smoke screen and charged forward.”
Next, Mon EMS will work to establish a Local Executive Board and negotiate their first contract. In the meantime, Faulkner said that he is hopeful that the victory will carry waves of progress in the state beyond Mon EMS.
“West Virginia has a rich, deep history with organized labor,” said Faulkner. “This group becoming our first IAEP Local in the state will show the other EMS professionals here that they too can count on the IAEP to be there for them. We’re here to help them realize their true potential by getting their seat at the table and having a unified voice!”
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