4,000 Boston Nurses Prepare For Strike As Contract Talks Continue

BOSTON, MA — Thousands of nurses at a Boston hospital are preparing to potentially go on strike amid ongoing contract negotiations.

More than 4,000 nurses at Brigham and Women’s Hospital represented by the Massachusetts Nurses Association could begin an open-ended strike on Thursday, Nov. 12, at 7 a.m. The two sides were scheduled to resume negotiations Monday, Nov. 9, in an effort to reach an agreement before the planned walkout.

The union issued a 10-day strike notice on Nov. 1 after nurses voted Oct. 23 to reject the hospital’s latest contract offer. Nurses are seeking a competitive wage scale, more health insurance choices, limits on temporary nurses and additional compensation for moving between patient assignments. According to the union, the changes would help the hospital recruit and retain permanent nurses while protecting patient care. Monday’s talks were scheduled to be the 28th bargaining session after 11 months of negotiations.

“Brigham nurses are resolved to fight for as long as it takes for patient safety and the professional respect we deserve,” labor and delivery nurse and bargaining committee Chair Kelly Morgan said.

Hospital officials have said their proposed contract includes annual 2.5 percent raises for nurses at the top of its wage scales while preserving annual 5 percent increases for nurses progressing through the existing scale. The proposal also includes 20 additional float-pool positions and no increase in the health insurance premium contribution percentage for current nurses enrolled in the hospital’s post-tax medical plan. Officials said the remaining disagreements concern compensation and benefits, including wages and health insurance, with no patient or workplace safety proposals unresolved.

The nurses previously held a one-day strike July 8 involving approximately 4,000 workers. The hospital then locked them out for four additional days, saying its contracts with replacement nurses required five days of work. An open-ended strike was later scheduled for Oct. 14 but was postponed to allow members to vote on the hospital’s revised offer, which was ultimately rejected.

According to hospital officials, Brigham and Women’s will remain open during a strike, with replacement nurses joining existing care teams. Most of those nurses worked at the hospital during the July work stoppage. The planned walkout does not include Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital or Massachusetts General Hospital.

Patients should attend scheduled appointments unless contacted by their provider. Those coming to the main campus beginning Thursday should allow additional time for traffic and activity around the hospital, according to officials.

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