MNA: One-Day Strike Scheduled by Brigham and Women's Faulkner Nurses for October 1 After MGB Fails to Reach Agreement Respecting Nurses and Protecting Patient Care

A 24-hour strike on October 1 by Brigham and Women's Faulkner Hospital nurses will happen unless MGB agrees to a fair contract that properly values the excellent patient care nurses provide under extremely challenging conditions

BOSTON, Sept. 16, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The 500 Brigham and Women's Faulkner Hospital nurses, represented by the Massachusetts Nurses Association (MNA), are preparing to hold a one-day strike on Tuesday, October 1 after Mass General Brigham (MGB) has repeatedly refused to agree to a contract that appropriately values the complex patient care nurses provide and improves recruitment and retention.

Faulkner nurses provided management with the legally required 10 days' strike notice during negotiations on September 16. If MGB fails to reach an agreement, Faulkner nurses will begin a 24-hour strike starting at 7 a.m. on October 1. A federal mediator is involved in negotiations and additional bargaining is expected prior to October 1.

"Unfortunately, MGB has reached a point where their executives care more about profits and expansion than respect nurses and ensuring safe staffing for our patients," said Dan Rec, a Faulkner RN and Co-Chair of the MNA Bargaining Committee. "We are prepared to strike for one day, unless MGB returns to the bargaining table and offers a fair contract that allows us to recruit and retain the nurses we need to provide safe patient care."

Faulkner nurses voted 99.7% on July 25 to authorize a potential one-day strike because after months of negotiations, MGB would not provide Faulkner nurses wage parity with Brigham and Women's Hospital nurses, and thereby failed to address longstanding unsafe staffing and patient safety issues.

"This strike really comes down to MGB valuing Faulkner nurses less than other nurses in the same hospital system, creating staffing shortages and putting our patients at risk," said Kathy Glennon, a Faulkner RN and Co-Chair of the MNA Bargaining Committee. "How can Faulkner Hospital ensure quality patient care and a safe working environment if MGB refuses to make equitable investments in our hospital?"

Why Faulkner Nurses Deserve Brigham Wage Parity

Nurses at Faulkner Hospital currently make significantly less than nurses at Brigham and Women's Hospital. Yet MGB treats the Faulkner like it is part of the Brigham. Faulkner patient care and working conditions are just as challenging, and the hospital has dozens of vacant nursing positions.

• MGB promotes Faulkner using the BWH name. In press releases and announcements, it uses the term "the Brigham family." 
  • In September 2023, the hospital celebrated the 25-year relationship between Faulkner and BWH by saying, "This integration has allowed BWFH to become vitally important to the work of the Brigham family…"
  • Faulkner and Brigham's internal medicine residency program, general surgery program, and surgical chief resident rotation have been integrated for more than 20 years.
  • Faulkner is home to numerous BWH institutions, including the BWH Comprehensive Spine Center, the BWH Sleep Medicine and Endocrinology Center and the BWH Department of Orthopedic Surgery.
    
    
• Many staff who work at the Faulkner are employed by BWH, including at physician offices and the Mohs and Dermatologic Surgery Center.
   
• The Brigham pays nurses the BWH MNA salary scale at other off-site locations, including the BWH Health Care Center 850 Boylston St. and the joint BWH/MGH health center in Foxborough.
   
• In some cases, management oversees Faulkner staff from offices at the Brigham, including a Brigham-based director who supervises Faulkner operating room assistants and Samantha Rowley, Vice President of Perioperative Services.
   
• BWH is even sending robots to Faulkner! A surgical robot has been accompanied by related cases coming from the Brigham.

MGB Financial Highlights

• MGB made $579 million system-wide in profits during the fiscal period ending December 31, 2023, according to the Center for Health Information and Analysis. Faulkner Hospital made $9.5 million in profits during that period.
• Anne Klibanski, MGB's president and CEO, made a nearly 25% salary increase from 2020 to 2021, going from $4.3 million to more than $5 million. Klibanski now makes more than $6 million.
• MGB is spending $2 billion expanding Mass General Hospital and Faulkner Hospital. This follows construction of a $465 million HQ in Somerville and a reported $100 million rebranding campaign.

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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