Local
Brigham nurses reject offer as pay dispute keeps labor talks unsettled
A majority of unionized nurses at Brigham and Women’s Hospital voted down a tentative contract, citing unresolved wage demands. The union says it will seek a return to negotiations; it has not announced another strike.
Nurses at Brigham and Women’s Hospital have rejected a tentative contract agreement, leaving a yearlong dispute over pay unresolved at one of the Boston region’s busiest medical centers.
The Massachusetts Nurses Association said a majority of its roughly 4,000 Brigham members voted against the offer during two days of voting. The union did not release the vote count. Its bargaining committee plans to ask hospital officials to resume negotiations within days.
The main sticking point was wages. Brigham nurses receive annual increases of 5% during their first 20 years of service. The hospital’s offer included two annual raises of 2.5% for nurses already at the top of the pay scale, but did not include the additional across-the-board increases the union sought.
Union bargaining committee chair Kelly Morgan said the vote reflected nurses’ commitment to patient safety and professional respect. Hospital officials, who had described the offer as their “last, best and final” proposal, said it would keep Brigham nursing pay among the highest in the market while supporting the hospital’s long-term financial stability. They said their priority remains safe, high-quality care.
The hospital and the union, which represents the largest group of unionized nurses in Massachusetts, have been negotiating a new contract for a year. Mass General Brigham, the health system that includes the hospital, has said it cannot afford the wage increases nurses initially requested. The system also confirmed job cuts this week as it seeks to reduce costs.
The dispute has already disrupted work at the hospital. Nurses staged a one-day strike in July, after which hospital leaders locked them out for four additional days and used temporary workers to care for patients. A second walkout was scheduled for Oct. 14, but the union postponed it after reaching the tentative agreement.
Union leaders retain the authority to call another strike with 10 days’ notice, but have announced no specific plans. They say their immediate goal is to return to the bargaining table. A strike could affect both nurses, who would go without pay, and patients, while the hospital could again rely on temporary staff to maintain services.
Brigham nurses at the top of the pay scale earn $220,000 or more a year. Nearby Boston Medical Center recently reached a separate agreement with 2,000 nurses represented by another union, averting a potential three-day strike; that deal included pay increases that the union described as meaningful, particularly for early-career nurses.