Nurses celebrate historic unionization Corewell Health with a rally in Detroit

In one of the largest union elections in two decades, nearly 10,000 Corewell Health nurses in southeastern Michigan voted to unionize, marking a major milestone in health care workforce organizing.

Chanting and cheering filled Nemo’s on Friday night (November 15). Detroits Corktown neighborhood as nurses gathered to celebrate the historic outcome.

“Who are we? Teamsters! What do we want? A contract!”

The nurses voted 4,958 to 2,957 to join the Teamsters, joining more than 57,000 other members.

For Corewell nurses, this win is about more than just representation; it’s about transforming the healthcare industry.

“I think this is really going to set a precedent for nurses across the state and across the country,” said Brandella Thomas, RN. “If we can do this, anyone can.”

“We knew we needed an organization that had the courage and backbone to take on a company like Corewell Health,” said Barbara Douglas, RN.

Nurses have advocated for better working conditions, fair wages, better health care and retirement benefits, and appropriate staffing levels.

They believe that organizing unions gives them the power to make meaningful changes.

“We will have one collective voice, almost 10,000 nurses strong,” said Sarah Johnson, a nurse in Royal Oak. “That’s really going to give us some power to make demands to improve health care in Michigan.”

The election followed what Teamsters general chairman Sean O’Brien described as Corewell’s “most expensive and aggressive union-busting campaign” to date.

In a statement to Local 4, Corewell responded in part:

“We value all of our nurses and are committed to moving forward together, united by our mission to provide high-quality care to our patients and the communities we serve.”

For these newly unionized nurses, patient care remains the top priority.

“We want to make sure we can do the best we can for our patients,” Johnson said.

Douglas echoed her sentiments, saying, “We want to be able to do that with the nursing and support staff who allow us to do that!”

—> Previous reporting: Corewell Health nurses push for Teamsters Union amid overtime concerns in Michigan