MNA Nurses Vote To Authorize 2nd Strike: 16 Hospitals Impacted

ST. PAUL, MN — Fifteen thousand nurses from the Twin Cities, Twin Ports, and Two Harbors voted "overwhelmingly" to authorize a strike over labor conditions, the Minnesota Nurses Association announced Wednesday.

Nurses can strike following a 10-day notice to the impacted hospitals.

The MNA and hospital executives have been locked in contract negotiations for eight months, with executive vs. nurse wages and chronic understaffing issues at the forefront.

Wednesday's vote comes after Minnesota nurses held a three-day strike in September, which is believed to be the largest strike of private-sector nurses in the nation's history.

"Our hospitals are in crisis, and our CEOs have failed nurses and patients," Mary Turner — MNA president and a North Memorial Hospital nurse — said in a news release.

"Nurses are fighting to win contracts that will help nurses stay on the job to provide patients with the exceptional care they deserve. Hospital CEOs with million-dollar salaries can afford to put Patients Before Profits in our hospitals and to do right by Minnesota nurses.”

Allina Health on Tuesday had urged union members to vote against a strike.

"An agreement can only be reached by being at the bargaining table together," read a statement from the hospital.

"We have worked to find alignment on a number of priority issues and are narrowing the gap on our wage proposals. MNA is now seeking a 22.5% wage increase over the three years of the contract and we have increased our wage proposal to 13.25% over three years."

Allina hospital officials said that "a strike or even the threat of a strike creates an unnecessary distraction for our employees and the communities we serve."

Below are all of the hospitals impacted by a potential strike:

M Health Fairview

• Riverside
• Southdale
• St. Joseph's
• St. John's

Essentia Health

• St. Mary's Duluth
• St. Mary's Superior

HealthPartners

• Methodist

Allina Health

• Abbott Northwestern
• Mercy
• United
• Unity

Children's Hospitals

• Children's Minneapolis
• Children's St. Paul

North Memorial Hospital

St. Luke's

• St. Luke's Duluth
• Lake View Two Harbors