Strike threat looms as LCMC Health targets longtime bargaining team member Mike Robertshaw
Nurses at University Medical Center (UMC) are once again sounding the alarm—this time not over patient care or staffing levels, but over what they’re calling a blatant act of retaliation. On Monday, June 16, at 5 p.m., nurses, labor advocates, and community members will rally outside UMC in protest of the hospital’s move to terminate registered nurse Mike Robertshaw, a key leader with NOLA Nurses United.
Robertshaw, who has served on the union’s bargaining team for three years, is facing dismissal over what hospital executives have described as “falsification of documentation”—a charge stemming from his decision to leave non-scheduled medication at a patient’s bedside for when they awoke from a nap. According to fellow nurses, this is a routine and safe practice, and when flagged, it typically results in a warning—not termination.
“This is textbook union busting,” said Dana Judkins, RN and fellow bargaining team member. “LCMC is going after our leaders over petty infractions while ignoring the larger crisis at hand: unsafe staffing, burnout, and the exodus of qualified nurses from bedside care. We have documentation that discipline isn’t being distributed fairly—it’s being weaponized against organizers.”
The protest is being organized by NOLA Nurses United alongside Step Up Louisiana and other labor allies. Organizers argue that the timing of the proposed termination is no coincidence. Just weeks ago, LCMC Health agreed to a Tentative Agreement during collective bargaining that included a progressive discipline policy—requiring verbal and written warnings before termination unless the incident is considered “egregious” and likely to harm a patient.
Nurses insist Robertshaw’s actions don’t meet that threshold and point out that similar actions by other nurses have been met with little or no disciplinary action. The union sees this as the latest move in a pattern of targeted retaliation that has escalated since their May 1 strike.
“We’re prepared to strike again if that’s what it takes,” a NOLA Nurses United spokesperson said in a statement. “We won’t sit back and let management dismantle our union one nurse at a time.”
Robertshaw is scheduled to present his case at a disciplinary hearing with LCMC Health on Monday at 12:30 p.m.—just hours before the rally. Supporters say the outcome will be a clear signal of whether LCMC Health intends to respect the terms of the tentative agreement and labor protections or continue escalating punitive actions against nurse organizers.
Since launching their organizing campaign in March 2023, nurses with NOLA Nurses United have led three strikes demanding safer staffing ratios, protections from workplace violence, and humane working hours. Their May 1 strike drew statewide attention and put renewed pressure on LCMC Health to address deteriorating conditions inside the hospital system.
Step Up Louisiana, a grassroots organization committed to racial and economic justice, is backing the protest and says the broader community has a stake in the outcome.
“Retaliation against essential workers is a direct attack on all of us,” said a Step Up representative. “When nurses are punished for speaking out, it endangers patients and undermines the public’s trust.”
The rally on Monday is expected to draw a crowd of nurses, labor supporters, and New Orleans residents who see the struggle at UMC as part of a broader fight for dignity in the workplace. Organizers say they will continue to escalate their efforts until LCMC Health backs down from what they see as a campaign to silence frontline healthcare workers through fear and intimidation.
Event Details:
What: Rally Against Retaliation at UMC
When: Monday, June 16, 2025, at 5:00 p.m.
Where: University Medical Center, 2000 Canal St., New Orleans, LA
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by PostX News and is published from a syndicated feed.)
