MNA: Brigham Nurses Return to Patients Following Historic Strike and Lockout; Fight for Fair Contracts and Safe Patient Care Continues

MGB Home Care clinicians remain on strike through Tuesday, concluding with rally at MGB HQ as caregivers call on Mass General Brigham to negotiate in good faith

BOSTON, July 13, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- More than 4,000 registered nurses at Brigham and Women's Hospital returned to caring for their patients at 6:59 a.m. Monday morning, concluding the largest nurse strike and lockout in Massachusetts history with a powerful solidarity walk into the hospital after Mass General Brigham's (MGB) four-day lockout ended.

Although Brigham nurses have returned to work, their contract fight is not over. Nurses will continue pressing the billionaires on the MGB Board of Directors and its multi-millionaire executives to negotiate a fair agreement that respects nurses, strengthens recruitment and retention, and protects the quality of patient care at Brigham and Women's Hospital.

Approximately 450 MGB Home Care clinicians remain on strike through Tuesday as they continue fighting for their first union contract. Their historic seven-day strike will conclude with a public rally Tuesday afternoon outside MGB Headquarters in Assembly Row.

"Today we walked back into the Brigham together with our heads held high because we never stopped fighting for our patients," said Kelly Morgan, RN, Chair of the Brigham and Women's Hospital MNA Bargaining Committee. "This strike and lockout became far bigger than any one hospital. Tens of millions of people around the world watched our fight on television and social media. We are deeply grateful to every nurse, healthcare worker, elected official, patient, labor union, and community member who stood beside us. Your support carried us through one of the most intense moments in Massachusetts nursing history."

"Now the responsibility falls squarely on Mass General Brigham's board member billionaires and multi-millionaire executives," Morgan continued. "MGB must recognize what this movement has become and return to bargaining prepared to negotiate in good faith. The world will keep watching. If MGB refuses to bargain seriously, Brigham nurses will continue this fight with the same determination we have shown throughout our first strike and MGB's four-day lockout. We will persist until nurses are treated with the respect we deserve, and we secure a contract that protects safe, high-quality patient care."

MGB Home Care End-of-Strike Rally

While Brigham nurses have returned to work following the lockout, MGB Home Care clinicians continue their strike through Tuesday.

Media Event: Tuesday, July 14, 2 p.m.

End-of-Strike Rally
MGB Headquarters – Assembly Row
399 Revolution Dr.
Somerville, MA

Home care clinicians will be joined by Brigham nurses, elected officials, labor leaders, and community supporters to mark the conclusion of the seven-day strike and reaffirm their commitment to winning a strong first contract.

Historic Campaign Continues

The Brigham nurses' one-day strike and four-day employer lockout became one of the most widely followed labor disputes in healthcare, generating extensive local, national, and international media coverage while reaching tens of millions of people through television broadcasts and social media.

Throughout the strike and lockout, Brigham nurses received support from elected officials, fellow healthcare workers, labor unions, patients, and community organizations across Massachusetts and beyond. That unprecedented support has strengthened nurses' resolve to secure a contract that protects both caregivers and patients.

Despite returning to work, Brigham nurses remain without a contract agreement after eight months of bargaining in which MGB has failed to adequately address key issues affecting recruitment, retention, and patient care.

Meanwhile, MGB Home Care clinicians continue fighting for their first union contract after more than a year of negotiations.

Brigham Nurses Continue Seeking

• A contract that improves recruitment and retention to strengthen patient care.
• Competitive wage increases after months of proposals from MGB that have included 0% cost of living wage increases.
• Affordable health insurance (no proposed MGB cost hike) and insurance choice.
• Greater investment in permanent nurses rather than reliance on temporary staffing. Limitations on the use of temporary nurses.
• Protection of patient care services and investments in frontline caregivers.

MGB Home Care Clinicians Continue Seeking

• Safe, reasonable caseloads.
• Clear and enforceable productivity standards.
• Competitive wages that support recruitment and retention.
• A fair first union contract that recognizes the essential care clinicians provide to patients throughout eastern Massachusetts.

Learn more about negotiations, MGB finances, executive compensation, and upcoming events at: www.massnurses.org/MGB

MassNurses.org │ Facebook.com/MassNurses │ Twitter.com/MassNurses │ Instagram.com/MassNurses 

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