Local
Brigham nurses withdraw Wednesday strike notice ahead of contract vote
The Massachusetts Nurses Association has pulled its planned strike notice after negotiations with Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and will put the hospital’s latest contract offer to a vote. The union says the proposal still lacks cost-of-living raises.
Nurses represented by the Massachusetts Nurses Association will vote on Brigham and Women’s Hospital’s latest contract offer after withdrawing a strike notice for Wednesday, the union said late Saturday.
The union cited “important progress” in negotiations. The hospital characterized its proposal as its last, best and final offer, saying it included significant movement on several union priorities. It said every nurse would receive an increase in base pay and that the top of the current salary scale would rise by 2.5%.
The MNA said the hospital continued to refuse cost-of-living wage increases, despite hours of bargaining. The union has not announced the vote’s timing or outcome.
The dispute follows a one-day nurses’ strike in July over similar issues, which was followed by a four-day hospital lockout. The union described that labor action as the largest nurses’ and health care workers’ strike in Massachusetts history.
The withdrawal removes the immediate prospect of a Wednesday walkout, a development likely to ease concerns for patients and families with scheduled care. Nurses could still call a strike, but would have to provide the hospital with 10 days’ notice.