Nurses at Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston will vote Thursday on whether to join the Maine State Nurses Association, a labor organization representing 4,000 nurses and caregivers across the state.

The election comes days after CMMC leadership fired 15 nurses and suspended five others.

The nurses’ supporters are pointing fingers at the hospital’s new owner, Prime Healthcare Foundation, whose for-profit parent company, Prime, also fired six nurses this spring during a union campaign at a hospital in Illinois.

Leaders with the nurses association and their national body, the National Nurses Organizing Committee, say they intend to file federal charges against Prime, accusing the hospital of discharging the nurses for participating in union activity in violation of the National Labor Relations Act.

A CMMC spokesperson said the disciplinary actions involve violations of long-standing hospital policies and are not related to union activity.

No matter which way the election goes, the labor groups plan to file charges “for these illegal actions against nurses” and seek reinstatement, organizer Vanessa Cuellar said.

As Gov. Janet Mills, Rep. Chellie Pingree of Maine, D-1st District, and a number of city leaders and community members criticize the firings, all eyes are on a union vote that nurses say will have a profound impact on staffing, retention and patient safety.

How will the election work?

Voting will take place in person Thursday at CMMC, via paper ballot, and will end at 8:30 p.m. Votes will be counted immediately after and the result will likely be available within an hour, Cuellar said.

The election result must be certified by the National Labor Relations Board before it becomes final.

Cuellar said the fired and suspended nurses can vote. Per the NLRB, employers can challenge voters they believe to be ineligible.

“Anybody can vote and we’ll fight for the nurses’ votes to be counted,” Cuellar said.

Could the nurses get their jobs back?

Maybe, but likely not right away.

A NLRB decision can take seven to 14 months while the board investigates charges, although officials say some cases take much longer. Remedies can include “make whole” agreements such as reinstatement and back pay for discharged workers.

The six nurses Prime fired this spring during a union campaign at Saint Mary of Nazareth Hospital in Chicago have not been reinstated, even after nurses voted overwhelmingly to unionize on June 17. The National Nurses Organizing Committee filed a charge against the hospital and Prime in August. The case remains open.

What are the nurses saying?

A majority of the fired and suspended nurses came together in a video Tuesday to share their stories and urge nurses to vote to unionize.

A GoFundMe for the nurses has raised nearly $9,000 in a week. Organizer Sheri Wagg, a Lewiston resident and former CMMC primary care provider, said eight of the impacted nurses have reached out to her to request funds.

That would come out to more than $1,000 a person. While all donations help, Wagg said, “it certainly doesn’t replace a two-week paycheck.”

There will be a community rally to support the nurses at noon Friday near the hospital on Main Street in Lewiston.