The June strike, which didn’t result in a deal, cost Allina $20.4 million.
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Almost 5,000 Twin Cities nurses will walk off the job on Labor Day, according to reports.
Union leaders planned to formally announce the strike by as many as 4,800 hospital nurses later Friday morning at a news conference at the Minnesota State Fair, along with leaders from other labor unions in the Twin Cities who also sent notice to Allina that they intend to support the walkout. Picketing will take place around Abbott Northwestern, Mercy, Phillips Eye Institute, United and Unity hospitals, as well as Allina’s headquarters.
In a statement released Friday Allina said, “Today, the nurses’ union chose the path of walking away from patient care instead of working to find a reasonable solution to the health insurance issues at the center of this contract dispute”.
The Star Tribune (http://strib.mn/2bSwYxW ) reports the walkout is to begin at 7 a.m. September 5. On Tuesday, they also couldn’t agree on whether new Allina nurses could choose the union plans. Last week, the nurses rejected the latest contract offer from Allina, voting against it with the required two-thirds majority to authorize a strike. Allina’s 4,800 union nurses feel “disrespected and devalued” by their employer, which has refused to discuss any of nurses’ top concerns – including workplace safety and staffing – until they agree to give up their preferred health insurance plans.
Multiple staffing agencies have already indicated they are recruiting nurses to cover an Allina strike, reports the Star Tribune.
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The two sides agreed to retain two of the union plans, but couldn’t agree on how much the nurses should pay in future cost increases. The union’s actions bring us no closer to a settlement and do a disservice not only to nurses but to all Allina Health employees and, most importantly, to our patients. While the corporate plan has lower premiums, it has higher deductibles, according to the Associated Press.
