Twin Cities nurses represented by the Minnesota Nurses Association have reached a tentative agreement on a three-year contract with five of the six hospital systems. Nurses will vote on the settlement Tuesday, Jan. 19.
The MNA negotiations team is recommending nurses ratify the agreement, the union said.
The new contract begins June 1, 2016, and covers 6,000 nurses at Fairview Southdale and Riverside facilities, Children's Minneapolis and St. Paul hospitals, Methodist, North Memorial Medical Center, and HealthEast's Bethesda, St. Joseph's, and St. John's hospitals. Current benefits, including health coverage and pensions, would carry over to the new contract.
Terms of the wage settlement were not disclosed.
The employers approached representatives of the Minnesota Nurses Association in November and proposed wage-only bargaining for the new contract. Earlier this week, MNA members voted overwhelmingly to authorize wage-only negotiations. Nurses and hospital negotiators agreed to terms during a one-day session on Thursday, Jan. 14.
Allina hospital management refused to engage in wage-only negotiations. Talks over the contract that affects those 6,000 nurses will happen at a later date.