The Hawaii Nurses’ Association/Office and Professional Employees International Union (OPEIU) Local 50 is seeking an injunction to stop Kapi‘olani Medical Center from locking unionized nurses out of the hospital following a planned one-day strike, the union’s second this year.

HNA/OPEIU Local 50 on Friday filed an unfair labor charge against Hawai‘i Pacific Health and Kapi‘olani Medical Center for Women and Children with the National Labor Relations Board asking for injunctive relief to stop the hospital from locking out its unionized nurses.

HNA President Rose Agas-Yuu, who has worked as a Kapi‘olani nurse for the past 32 years, said in a statement that the new unfair labor practice charge was the seventh filed against Kapi‘olani in the past several months.

In the charge, HNA/OPEIU Local 50 alleged that Hawai‘i Pacific Health and Kapi‘olani Medical Center has violated the National Labor Relations Act by failing and refusing to bargain in good faith. The charge alleges that the lockout is unlawful because the action is intended to punish the nurses for exercising their protected right to strike.

“When will the cycle of retaliation and intimidation stop? The lockout is a blatant act of retaliation against the nurses for protesting the retaliation they faced for filing safe staffing forms, “Agas-Yuu said. “This supports why the nurses are planning to hold the one-day strike for unfair labor practices. This pattern of unfair labor practices by Kapi‘olani violates the federally protected rights of workers.”

Tensions have been heating up between HNA and the management of Kapi‘olani Medical Center for Women & Children since Dec. 1 when the previous labor contract expired. HNA held a weeklong strike from Jan. 21-28.

Some 96% of HNA-represented nurses voted over Labor Day weekend to authorize a new strike, and on Sept. 3 HNA filed a 10-day notice that its 600 nurses at Kapi‘olani Medical Center for Women and Children would strike again on Sept. 13.

The management of Kapi‘olani Medical Center for Women & Children held a news conference on Sept. 4 to announce that unless HNA accepted their latest contract offer they would impose a lockout. Management said it has held more than 30 negotiating sessions with HNA and six sessions with a federal mediator.

Management at the news conference said that the lockout would begin when the Hawaii Nurses’ Association’s planned one-day strike on Sept. 13 ends, and would prevent all registered nurses represented by HNA with a contract that expired Nov. 30 from returning to work. Management added that they planned to bring in temporary staff during the lockout and that Kapi‘olani would remain fully staffed to serve patients’ needs.

A spokesperson for Hawai’i Pacific Health and Kapi‘olani Medical Center for Women and Children could not immediately respond to a request for an updated comment but said the hospital would respond later today.