AMID FIGHT TO BECOME TEAMSTERS, UNITYPOINT NURSES MEET WITH LAWMAKERS

Nurses, Elected Officials Demand UnityPoint Recognize Workers as Teamsters

DES MOINES, Iowa, May 15, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- This week, nurses at UnityPoint Health in Des Moines, Iowa, met with State Senator Zach Wahls (D-43^rd District), Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and current Iowa State Auditor and gubernatorial candidate Rob Sand to discuss issues facing nurses in Iowa including union-busting, corporate greed, unsafe staffing, and rural community access to health care. These roundtable discussions come after nurses voted to organize with Teamsters Local 90 but have yet to have their election certified due to objections from their employer.

"These workers have fought too hard to be ignored," said Alano De La Rosa, Secretary-Treasurer of Local 90. "This week's roundtable discussions dove into the very reasons nurses at UnityPoint voted to organize in the first place — safe staffing, fair pay, and better working conditions that both nurses and patients deserve. We will not let time break us and we appreciate Zach Wahls, Elizabeth Warren, and Rob Sand for standing with nurses and demanding the justice they deserve."

In 2025, nurses at UnityPoint Health joined the Teamsters in order to fight for safety and fair treatment for both patients and staff, defeating a multimillion-dollar union-busting campaign.

"UnityPoint Health continues to prioritize financial gains over investments in safe staffing, worker retention, and patient care," said Deb Henning, a registered nurse at UnityPoint Health. "We have been exploited for our compassion and dedication to our patients for long enough. Meeting with leaders to discuss issues Iowa nurses face is important but what's more important is for UnityPoint to do the right thing. Stop the delays, recognize our union, and start negotiating our contract."

Teamsters Local 90 represents workers in a wide variety of industries throughout Iowa. For more information, go to  teamsterslocal90.org.

Contact:
Lena Melentijevic, (347) 208-2279             
[email protected]

SOURCE Teamsters Local 90