MNA: Brigham and Women's Faulkner Nurses Vote to Ratify Contract that Averted One-Day Strike and Provides Substantial Investment in Nurses to Address Staffing and Patient Care Concerns

Nurses at Brigham and Women's Faulkner Hospital nurses reached a tentative agreement in September aimed at improving recruitment and retention of nurses, staffing, and patient care quality

BOSTON, Oct. 17, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The 500 Brigham and Women's Faulkner Hospital nurses, represented by the Massachusetts Nurses Association (MNA), voted overwhelmingly on Thursday, October 17 to ratify a new contract. BWFH nurses had been prepared to hold a one-day strike on October 1 until Mass General Brigham (MGB) agreed to a contract that appropriately values the complex patient care nurses provide and will help BWFH with recruitment and retention.

Following a 99.7% strike authorization vote on July 25, BWFH nurses reached a tentative agreement with MGB including raises of 25% to 33% over three years, depending on if nurses are on wage steps or at the top of the step scale. Nurses voted throughout the day at the hospital on Thursday to finalize the agreement.

"We are proud of this agreement and our efforts to improvement nurse recruitment and retention at BWFH so our patients can get the quality care they deserve," said Dan Rec, a Faulkner RN and Co-Chair of the MNA Bargaining Committee. "Our nurses demonstrated strength together and fought hard to convince MGB executives to agree to important investments in Faulkner nurses, staffing, and patient care."

"This new contract will help us protect our ability to provide safe patient care and address staffing shortages," said Kathy Glennon, a Faulkner RN and Co-Chair of the MNA Bargaining Committee. "Nurses should feel respected and valued for the complex and challenging care we provide, and this hard-fought investment by MGB in BWFH nurses should help keep nurses at the bedside."

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Founded in 1903, the Massachusetts Nurses Association is the largest union of registered nurses in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Its 25,000 members advance the nursing profession by fostering high standards of nursing practice, promoting the economic and general welfare of nurses in the workplace, projecting a positive and realistic view of nursing, and by lobbying the Legislature and regulatory agencies on health care issues affecting nurses and the public.

SOURCE Massachusetts Nurses Association