Labor & Employment Law

Michigan Nurses Avoid Strike, Reach Tentative Agreement with Sparrow Hospital

By James Parks

Registered nurses and health care professionals at Sparrow Hospital in Lansing, Mich., reached a tentative agreement yesterday with management on a new three-year contract, avoiding both a strike and lockout set for Monday morning.

The 2,100 employees, members of the Michigan Nurses Association/Professional Employees Council of Sparrow Hospital (MNA/PECSH), an affiliate of the National Nurses United (NNU), had voted to strike Nov. 22 if an agreement was not reached. The hospital management also threatened to lock out the nurses and other health care professionals if they did not accept management?s last offer.  

 Under the tentative agreement, the hospital will withdraw its lockout notice and the union will cancel the strike scheduled for Monday, Nov. 22. The new deal was hammered out in a series of meetings this week between Sparrow?s CEO and MNA Executive Director John Karebian.

MNA/PECSH President Jeff Breslin says:

We?re pleased that we have an agreement. Everyone came together in the interest of the hospital, the associates and the community.

The tentative agreement includes increased nurse staffing levels, a wage increase and an agreement to changes in the health and retirement programs.   

Sparrow RNs had said their main priority is to elevate the standard of care for the hospital patients and the community. The nurses also cited concerns about management proposals to implement unwarranted furloughs of nurses, which would escalate staffing shortages and could put even more patients at risk, as well as unacceptable efforts to reduce the nurses? and health care professionals? retirement security.

Full post as published by AFL-CIO NOW BLOG on November 19, 2010 (boomark / email).