A group of licensed nursing assistants and other employees at the University of Vermont Medical Center in Burlington are seeking permission from the hospital to establish a union.
About two dozen group representatives attended the public-comment portion of the hospital's board of trustees.
The Burlington Free Press reports representatives say the group wants to bargain for better working conditions that will translate to improved patient care.
Laurie Aunchman, president of the Vermont Federation of Nurses and Health Professionals, says the nurses' union supports the effort of licensed nursing assistants and other medical support staff at UVM to unionize. She says about 350 workers would qualify for the union.
Hospital spokesman Mike Noble says it recognizes the group's right to organize.
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