By Rita Diller
There have been more rumblings from within the panicked Planned Parenthood organization, as workers began union organizing across the Midwest in late May of this year. They said they were anticipating the overturn of Roe v. Wade and an increased workload.
According to a Guardian article, PP workers across five states—Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota—turned to the National Labor Relations Board when Planned Parenthood management denied their request to unionize.
The Guardian quoted April Clark, an Iowa registered nurse, who said: “We really can’t even safely maintain clinics now with our staffing, much less once the need gets higher.” She also cited high turnover rates of PP employees.
“They’re constantly pushing to have less staff in the clinic and at the same time do more,” she said of her employer, Planned Parenthood.
Meanwhile, in Massachusetts, Planned Parenthood workers were successful in their bid to unionize after positive results in a July 2022 election. Management at Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts opposed the bid to unionize, according to an Observer article, “paint[ing] the union as a threat to the [Planned Parenthood] mission.” Planned Parenthood Federation of America reported a $69.7 million profit (excess of total revenue over total expenses) in its latest annual report. It has yet to release its long overdue 2020-2021 income and expense numbers.