Update: Thursday, February 8, 2024, 12:30 p.m.:
Some 140 nurses at ProMedica Hickman Hospital in Adrian have ratified a new contract, after months of negotiation that included a vote to authorize a potential strike. The new contract takes effect immediately, according to the Michigan Nurses Association.
The contract includes pay increases that nurses say will help the hospital recruit and retain staff, one of the union's key goals. It does not include a two-tier retirement system that the MNA said ProMedica had initially proposed.
Nurses partially credited a "practice strike" demonstration held outside the hospital on January 30 for the improved terms. (At the time, a spokesperson for ProMedica said it was "misleading" to call the action a strike of any kind, as it didn't involve a work stoppage.)
“I don’t think ProMedica had ever seen anything like the dedication to a fair contract that MNA nurses at our hospital were demonstrating,” nurse Sue McGaffigan said in an emailed statement Thursday. “Something clearly clicked for the hospital’s administration when they saw almost every single RN who works at our facility either wearing red on the floors or picketing outside the hospital in the slush."
The hospital's leadership maintained throughout the dispute that its offers to the union have always included "fair and market value" wages.
“ProMedica Hickman Hospital is pleased that the MNA membership has ratified the contract," a spokesperson said via email Thursday. "The contract underscores our commitment to providing all our employees with fair and market-competitive wages and benefits. It also reflects our long-standing commitment to supporting and promoting a culture of high-quality care and patient safety — both being areas in which the hospital has been regularly recognized as an industry leader.”
Original post, Thursday, February 1, 2024:
Nurses at ProMedica Hickman Hospital in Adrian say they've reached a tentative deal that would help avert a potential strike.
A majority of the union of some 140 nurses had voted to authorize a strike last month, and held a "practice strike" demonstration outside the hospital Tuesday.
The agreement reached late Wednesday cuts the hospital's proposal for a two-year retirement system. It also raises wages, with the top earners making $50 an hour by the end of the three year contract.
“As nurses, we were fighting for the future of our community,” said Tracy Webb, a critical care nurse and president of the local union, in a statement. “We feel that the gains in this agreement will help us recruit and retain RNs so we can keep our patients safe every shift.”
“ProMedica Hickman Hospital leaders have continued bargaining discussions with the Michigan Nurses Association this week, and we are pleased to have reached a tentative agreement,” a hospital spokesperson said via email Wednesday.
The deal still has to be approved by members, and a ratification vote is scheduled for February 7.
