The MNA cited data from the state’s Department of Health, which indicates emergency room hospitalizations have increased.
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Unionized nurses at UMass Memorial Medical Center's University Campus voted 1,233 to 17 on Wednesday in favor of authorizing a potential 14-day strike as contract negotiations continue between the union and the medical center’s administration.
The vote does not guarantee a strike will take place, but it does give the Massachusetts Nurses Association union the authority to organize a strike in the future.
"We remain 100 percent committed to continuing to bargain in good faith and to reaching a fair agreement. A work stoppage impacts everyone. We are confident we can reach a resolution that is beneficial to our nurses and non-nursing caregivers, the care we provide to our patients, and the overall stability of the Medical Center,” UMass Memorial Health said in a statement. “If a work stoppage were to occur, we are well prepared to implement plans that will maintain hospital operations and avoid disruption of essential services and care our patients need."
As part of contract negotiations, nurses at UMMC’s University Campus are asking administration to beef up staffing and retention for nurses, which would ultimately improve patient care, according to the MNA. Requests have included nurse-patient ratios, increased wage offerings for new recruits, and guaranteeing charge nurses, who help manage assignments and jump into patient care as needed.
“Our nurses endured the trauma of serving as the region’s primary trauma center during the COVID pandemic, and our emergency department now feels like a MASH unit nearly every day,” said Ellen Smith, co-chair of the MNA bargaining unit, in a statement. “We are all now dealing with the stress and moral injury of working in an environment that is not suited to support the level of care our patients need in these post-COVID years.”
These were central issues in the nearby historic Saint Vincent nurses strike, which formally concluded during the 2022-2023 holiday season. That strike lasted 301 days.
The MNA cited data from the state’s Department of Health, which indicates emergency room hospitalizations have increased following the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, the MNA said, staffing levels needed to shift to accommodate the change.
Monica Benevides is a correspondent for Worcester Business Journal.
