Tentative contract averts Brigham nurses’ strike at the last minute

MORE THAN 4,000 NURSES at Brigham and Women’s Hospital reached a tentative contract agreement late Wednesday night, avoiding what could have been the largest open-ended nurses strike in Massachusetts history.

Nurses represented by the Massachusetts Nurses Association and hospital officials left negotiations Monday without a resolution, and ended up back at the table Wednesday to avert the strike at the last minute. The walkout was scheduled to start Thursday.

The tentative agreement remains subject to ratification by nurses in the bargaining unit, and the MNA said the union’s committee has recommended that Brigham nurses vote to ratify the contract.

“I’m incredibly proud of the Brigham nurses who stood strong to protect the world-class patient care we provide,” Kelly Morgan, BWH MNA Bargaining Committee chair and a labor and delivery nurse, said. “We secured this agreement with the help of countless community members, patients, unions and elected officials who supported us for many months. By standing together, we protected patients and the future of union nursing care at the Brigham.”

The hospital says the agreement “was reached within the financial limits of the hospital’s last, best and final offer presented on October 10.”

“We deeply value our Brigham nurses and believe this agreement recognizes their important contributions while supporting the long-term sustainability of our hospital and our ability to care for our patients and communities,” the hospital said in a statement.

The tentative agreement follows months of negotiations, including a July 8 one-day strike, after which the thousands of nurses who went on strike were locked out of the hospital for four additional days. The union voted September 24 to authorize an open-ended strike. They voted late last month to reject MGB’s “last, best, and final” contract offer.

Nurses will receive wage increases and lower health insurance costs under the tentative contract.

All nurses below the top step would receive a $1,000 bonus prorated based on their full-time-equivalent hours upon ratification, while new top steps with greater pay are added to the pay structure. Nurses also defeated a proposed health insurance premium split increase, the MNA said.

Nurses agreed to a compromise on 40-hour nurses on individual plans. Current nurses working 40 hours will retain premium-free coverage while newly hired 40-hour nurses will contribute 2.5 percent of the premium.

The new agreement includes contract language that the hospital does not intend to replace permanent Brigham nurses with temporary nurses, per the MNA.

The hospital’s dependence on temporary and floating nurses has been a central flashpoint in the labor dispute. Union nurses frequently raised concerns that temporary nurses — who are also paid higher wages — undermine permanent union jobs and are unfamiliar with patients and hospital systems.

Hospitals use temporary nurses primarily to quickly fill critical staffing gaps and maintain safe patient-to-nurse ratios when local hiring falls short.

MGB agreed in the tentative contract to post 20 new 36-hour float pool nurse positions to help limit the reliance on temporary nurses. The hospital will track floating into and out of each unit and the use of temporary nurses, the MNA said. It will also provide the union with data that will be reviewed by a new joint Staffing and Resources Committee that will look for ways to reduce floating and the use of temporary staff.

There are other provisions in the contract to restrict reliance on temporary staffing, such as requiring the hospital to provide the MNA with a rationale whenever more than 15 percent of the full-time-equivalent positions in any hospital unit are covered by non-permanent nurses.

It also builds in more protection for nurses responsible for coordinating care at greater capacity, and reduces the acute patient assignment workload for nurses in charge or overseeing others. Other benefits include adding grandchildren to bereavement leave, adding paid time for workplace-related court appearances, and adding language that all nurses can attend conferences.

Gov. Maura Healey released a statement Thursday morning saying she was pleased the two sides reached a tentative agreement and avoided a strike. Healey and Boston Mayor Michelle Wu made appearances at Monday’s negotiating session.

“I appreciated the opportunity to meet with both sides and urge them to stay at the table and continue working in good faith toward a resolution,” Healey said Thursday. “I want to thank and congratulate everyone involved for their hard work, commitment and willingness to reach an agreement. Our nurses are essential to our health care system, and this is an important step toward ensuring stability at the hospital and the continuity of care that patients depend on.”