Cooley Dickinson Hospital nurses set vote for possible strike
NORTHAMPTON — Union nurses at Cooley Dickinson Hospital plan to take a strike authorization vote Oct. 9.
A yes vote by Cooley Dickinson nurses would not necessarily mean they will strike, the Massachusetts Nurses Association said in a statement Thursday. But the vote could give their elected bargaining committee the authority to hold a one-day strike after the issuance of a legally required 10-day notice.
The 400-member MNA bargaining unit has been negotiating with management at the Northampton hospital since earlier this year, said union spokesman Joe Markman.
At issue, he said, are uncompetitive wages, potential hikes to health insurance costs and nurses facing unsafe staffing conditions.
Parent hospital system Mass General Brigham also wants to redefine full-time from 30 to 36 hours, the statement said.
"Our strike authorization vote will show MGB that Cooley nurses are truly united," said Aaron Winston, a registered nurse at Cooley Dickinson and MNA Committee co-chair, in the statement. "If MGB can pay its CEO more than $8 million in a single year, it can invest in Cooley nurses and our patients. We will demonstrate loud and clear that our community hospital deserves much better than what MGB is proposing."
For Cooley Dickinson, Kelly Mitchell, of the public affairs office at Mass General Brigham, said that management participated in 17 sessions with the MNA to date.
"We have presented a fair and equitable proposal and reached agreement on many important issues," she said in a statement. "Our focus remains on supporting our nurses while providing high-quality, safe care for our patients. If a strike were to be authorized by the MNA and were to take place, we are prepared to continue providing the excellent care our patients expect."
Stories by Jim Kinney
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