Union says Tufts nurses plan to go on strike this month

BOSTON — The union that represents 1,200 nurses at Tufts Medical Center in Boston says its members will go on strike this month after the hospital and union officials failed to negotiate a new contract.

The Massachusetts Nurses Association says the strike will begin the morning of July 12 and run until July 13. But hospital officials have said they plan to lock out striking nurses for four additional days while employing temporary workers.

"If nurses are out on the street walking a line, there's something very wrong inside the hospital," said nurse Mary Cornacchia.

Cornacchia has been a nurse at Tufts Medical Center for nearly three decades. She says the nurses have been negotiating their contracts with Tufts for the last year and after more than 30 meetings they're still not satisfied.

The union says contract negotiations have gone on since April 2016. Concerns have been raised by union officials over "patient safety, lack of resources and lagging compensation."

Cornacchia says the biggest concern is staffing levels and sometimes, there's not enough nurses in the Intensive Care Unit.

"And there might be a bed in the unit, but there's no nurse to staff that bed, so the patient winds up waiting," said Cornacchia.

But Chief Nursing Officer Terry Hudson-Jinks says they're filling those gaps and they plan to add more staff, as well as offer a more than 10 percent raise to 60 percent of their nurses.

"So that means each nurse at the top would get between $13,000 and $17,000 take-home pay more a year," said Hudson-Jinks.

She says nurses haven't agreed on the company's changes to their pension plan and now the hospital is preparing to staff temporary nurses during the strike.

"Our patients have grown to expect top notch care at the Medical Center and we're going to deliver that 24/7, 365, even during a strike, we're ready," said Hudson-Jinks.

Tufts President & CEO Michael Wagner sent Boston 25 News the following statement:

"Tufts Medical Center has been preparing for this scenario, and our physicians and patient care teams, alongside qualified registered nurses from across the country, are ready to provide top quality care throughout any work stoppage."

The strike can still be avoided if a deal is reached in the next 10 days.

Associated Press