Nurses at five Twin Cities hospital systems to vote on tentative pact

One day after nurses at five Twin Cities hospital systems agreed to limit the scope of bargaining to wages, negotiators for the two sides reached a tentative agreement over the terms of a new, three-year contract that, if ratified by members, would go into effect June 1.

The Minnesota Nurses Association, which represents more than 6,000 nurses covered by metro-wide bargaining, announced the tentative agreement last night.

Nurses at Children’s Hospitals in Minneapolis and St. Paul; Fairview hospitals at Southdale and Riverside; HealthEast’s Bethesda, St. John’s and St. Joseph’s hospitals; North Memorial Medical Center; and Methodist Hospital will take a ratification vote next Tuesday.

By agreeing to wage-only negotiations, nurses ensured that their existing pension and health benefits, as well as grievance and other protections, remain unchanged over the next three-plus years.

Allina Health, which employs about 6,000 Twin Cities nurses represented by the MNA, opted against participating in metro-wide bargaining. This includes nurses at Abbott Northwestern, Phillips Eye Institute, and Mercy, United and Unity hospitals.

The two sides will begin bargaining “at a later date,” the union said, adding that Allina nurses plan “a rally to inform and unify” members of their unit Feb. 6.