MNA: Boston City Council to Vote on Resolution Supporting Brigham Nurses as they Hold Informational Picket on April 29

Top MGB Executives made $35.9 million in FY2024, offered Brigham nurses 0% raises and closed essential patient care services; Nurses seek fair contract

BOSTON, April 28, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- On the same day that Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) nurses will hold an informational picket on April 29, the Boston City Council is set to vote on a resolution supporting the nurses. Brigham nurses will speak to the council at 12 p.m. on Wednesday prior to the vote. The resolution put forward by Councilors Edward M. Flynn and Sharon Durkan supports the nurses "in their efforts to receive fair wages, affordable healthcare, safe working conditions, and the respect and dignity they deserve."

The informational picket is meant to publicly pressure Mass General Brigham (MGB) executives to properly value nurses and protect patient safety. Nurses are calling out corporate decisions that threaten the quality and future of care at one of the nation's premier academic medical centers.

Informational Picket Details
Date: Wednesday, April 29, 2026
Time: 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.
Location: Outside BWH at 75 Francis St., Boston, MA
Details: This is an informational picket, not a strike. Nurses will participate outside of working hours or during breaks and will continue to provide uninterrupted patient care.

"We are standing up together as Brigham nurses to protect our patients and the future of care at the Brigham," said Kelly Morgan, a labor and delivery nurse and Chair of the BWH MNA Bargaining Committee. "When MGB executives close services, shift care away from this hospital and fail to invest in the nurses who provide that care, it directly impacts the quality and safety patients depend on."

Nurses Raise Concerns About Service Closures and Corporate Priorities

Brigham nurses point to a pattern of decisions by MGB that prioritize system-wide financial strategies over patient care at BWH. While top MGB executives earned a combined $35.9 million in fiscal year 2024, MGB has:

• Closed the Weiner Center, moving specialized preoperative services to another facility and disrupting continuity of care for complex patients.
• Closed the BWH Burn Unit, despite serious concerns raised by nurses and scrutiny from state regulators.
• Eliminated the Integrated Care Management Program (iCMP) at BWH and consolidated the service under MGB.

"The decision by MGB executives to close Brigham services directly affect patients and the level of care they receive," said Jim McCarthy, a PACU nurse and Vice Chair of the BWH MNA. "Brigham nurses are speaking out because we know what it takes to deliver this care safely, and we see what's being lost. We're standing up now to protect our patients and the long-term strength of this hospital."

Undervaluing Nurses Threatens Recruitment, Retention, and Patient Care

Nurses say MGB's proposals at the bargaining table fail to support the workforce needed to sustain high-quality care, including inadequate wage proposals and increased insurance costs.

• 0% Wage Offer = Disrespectful and Undermines Patient Care
  • MGB is refusing to offer any wage increase for nurses below the top step. This is unacceptable and undermines recruitment, retention, and safe patient care.
  • At the same time, MGB is advertising a Chief Nursing Executive position with a salary range of $750,000 to $950,000 and a CNO position at MGH for ~$600,000.
• Health Insurance Costs
  • MGB is trying to increase nurses' insurance costs at BWH, after hanging a potential tax penalty over nurses' heads for a year because BWH's insurance was not compliant with state law.

At the same time, MGB has reported strong financial performance, including a $59.2 million operating gain in 2025 and a $2.4 billion net margin. CEO Anne Klibanski earned $8.4 million in fiscal year 2024. The top 14 highly paid executives listed in the MGB 990 IRS form were paid $35.9 million that year. 

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Founded in 1903, the Massachusetts Nurses Association is the largest union of registered nurses in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Its 25,000 members advance the nursing profession by fostering high standards of nursing practice, promoting the economic and general welfare of nurses in the workplace, projecting a positive and realistic view of nursing, and by lobbying the Legislature and regulatory agencies on health care issues affecting nurses and the public.

SOURCE Massachusetts Nurses Association