UMass Nurses Ratify Contract

Nurses at UMass Memorial Medical Center's University campus voted to ratify their three-year contract with hospital management on Friday, the nurses' union said, officially ending lengthy contract negotiations mired by a dispute over staffing levels.

The contract, which covers more than 1,100 nurses, includes guaranteed limits on nurses' patient assignments in surgical and psychiatric units, as well as the emergency department, and will require the hospital to hire a "significant" number of nurses over the next six months, according to the Massachusetts Nurses Association (MNA), the union that represents the nurses.

Under the contract, no more than five patients will be assigned to each nurse during day and evening shifts, while night-shift nurses will receive a mix of five and six patient assignments, the MNA said.

The nurses will also receive retroactive salary increases dating back to April 2012, and another percent increase is scheduled for April 2014, the MNA said.

"This is an important agreement that will provide safe limits on nurses' patient assignments, which will mean our nurses can deliver and our patients will receive better care," said Margaret McLoughlin, co-chair of the local bargaining unit of the MNA.

Last month, UMass nurses who work at the UMass Memorial and Hahnemann campuses ratified their contract, which included similar staffing provisions. Negotiations lasted 18 months and nurses from all three campuses voted to strike in May, though a strike was averted through tentative agreements with UMass.

A spokesman for UMass could not be reached for comment immediately Monday morning, but on the hospital confirmed the ratification in a statement on its informational website, www.umassmemorialchange.org.

"Together with the MNA, we have reached an agreement that meets the objectives of the Medical Center and is also in the best interests of our nurses, and most importantly, the patients and the families in the communities we are proud to serve."