Minnesota nurses reach tentative agreements with nearly all hospitals ahead of strike

MINNEAPOLIS– Nurses in Minnesota have reached tentative agreements with nearly all hospitals to avert a planned strike later this month.

The Nurses Association of Minnesota called the agreements a “historic victory” for nurses and patients, saying the agreements include unprecedented language to address staffing shortages. The nurses’ union also says it includes a major wage increase of 18% over the next three years for Twin Cities nurses and 17% for Duluth-area nurses over the next three years.

“For years, hospital leaders have pushed nurses out of the profession by under-equipping our units and undervaluing our nurses. This tentative agreement will help keep nurses at the bedside, where we will continue to fight to oppose corporate health policies that threaten our hospital systems and the care our patients deserve,” said MP Chairwoman Mary Turner.

St. Luke’s Lake View Hospital in Two Harbors is the latest holdout, as contract negotiations are still ongoing. The next trading session is set for Friday.

“Lake View will continue our strong tradition of working with the MNA to reach a fair deal for all of our stakeholders, including our patients, the community and our entire Lake View team,” the hospital said in a statement.

Hospitals with tentative agreements include Children’s Minnesota, North Memorial, Allina Health, M Health Fairview, HealthPartners, Essentia Health and St. Luke’s.

With flu season already well ahead of normal, Becky Goettl feels better knowing she and her 5-year-old daughter, Blakely, will be able to get care if needed.

It was something that worried him last week when the nurses’ union voted to strike.

“I’m relieved,” Goettl said. “We rely on these nurses.”

Goettl comes from a family of healthcare workers and she believes the staffing shortage will resolve itself with more pay on the table.

“The reason you have a shortage is really because of the salary,” Goettl said, “I’m glad that [staffing shortage issues] is in the language, but even if it wouldn’t have been, with this pay rise they deserve, it will be so much better for everyone.”

Read some hospital statements below:

Allina Health

We are pleased to announce that Allina Health and the Nurses Association of Minnesota have reached a tentative agreement early this morning. The settlement, which the union recommends, is now subject to ratification by union members,” Allina said in a statement. “Allina Health is pleased with the settlement, which reflects the priorities of both parties and is fair and equitable to our employees, patients and communities. We are grateful to be able to return our full attention to community care in this time of increased illness and demand.

Minnesota for kids

Children’s Minnesota is grateful to have reached a tentative agreement with the Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA). As a condition of the agreement, the pending strike notice at Children’s Minnesota was waived. The union has yet to ratify the agreement. A vote is expected to take place this week. The union’s bargaining team unanimously and favorably recommends the ratification of this agreement.

Thanks to the tireless work of our negotiation team and countless others, patients and families in our region can be assured that our children’s experts will be there to care for the most vulnerable children in our community. We appreciate the dedication of our nurses and countless other staff for the vital role they play in caring for the families of our patients.

Essential Health

Essentia Health and the Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA) have reached a tentative agreement on a new three-year contract covering approximately 1,300 nurses who care for patients at our hospitals in Duluth and Superior. This positive outcome is the result of hard work at the bargaining table.

As part of the deal, the MP agreed to withdraw his strike notice.

The MNA will share the details of the tentative agreement with its members and proceed to a ratification vote by December 12. The MNA negotiating committee unanimously agreed to recommend ratification.

At Essentia, we are privileged to have knowledgeable and compassionate nurses, and we value their contributions to making a healthy difference in people’s lives. Thank you to all of our colleagues for the teamwork demonstrated as we prepared for a potential work stoppage. We appreciate the efforts of the bargaining teams to reach a resolution, allowing all of us to continue to focus on delivering high quality patient care to the communities we are privileged to serve.

Twin Cities Hospitals

The Twin Cities Hospitals Group hospital systems have all reached a tentative agreement with the Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA) on three-year agreements. The tentative agreements will be recommended for ratification by the MNA leadership and will remain subject to a ratification vote by the MNA membership. The dates for the votes have not been set.

The tentative agreement includes an 18 percent wage increase over three years and other contract improvements, including staffing provisions designed to help recruit and retain nurses.

“The new tentative agreement shows that when we work together, we can develop a staffing language that meets the unique needs of our hospitals, our nurses and, most importantly, our patients,” the Twin Cities spokesperson said. Hospitals Group, Paul Omodt. “Hospital environments are dynamic and this agreement will help ensure that our patients continue to receive excellent care.”

With the tentative agreements, the MNA withdrew its strike notice at Twin Cities Hospitals Group hospitals, including Children’s Minnesota, North Memorial, Methodist and Fairview’s West and East campuses.

Patients whose procedures have been postponed within the past few days should contact their healthcare provider to reschedule.

For more information, please visit www.twincitieshospitals.com.

The nurses at these hospitals were among the thousands of MNA healthcare workers who voted in favor of a strike last week.

The nurses also went on strike in September on what they call unfair labor practices; this strike lasted three days. The union that represents them says that since they returned to work, these practices are still taking place and they have not been able to negotiate a contract.