Tufts Medical Center leadership, nurses union re-enter negotiations in hopes of averting strike
MNA said their nurses are already prepared to walk out Wednesday morning, with strike ending Thursday morning.
Tufts Medical Center Nurses represented by the Massachusetts Nurses Association and hospital leaders are returning to the table Tuesday for another round of negotiations in the hopes of averting a planned one-day strike.
The MNA said their nurses are already prepared to walk out Wednesday at 7 am in the name of safe patient care, retirement and "other outstanding issues." Their plan is to return Thursday morning. However, they also claimed the hospital has threatened to lock them out for four days should they strike.
Tufts denied the lockout claim but said that because they will have to hire specialized nurses for a minimum of five days in the event of a strike, any nurse not coming to work Wednesday will not be allowed to work until after those five days.
"The hospital wants to take away long-earned retirement benefits of hundreds of Tufts nurses," Mary Havlicek Cornacchia, OR Nurse and bargaining unit co-chair said. "Instead, we have proposed a different pension plan that would mean $11 million in immediate savings for the hospital and an $85 million reduction in liabilities. We are ready to negotiate for real solutions for our patients and our nurses on Tuesday, but we are also prepared to strike for 24 hours if Tufts is not willing to negotiate."
"The union is bringing nurses out on strike for one reason and one reason only -- money. Money we simply do not have and money that would go to only 341 nurses in a pension out of 1,200 nurses. The MNA appears to be willfully oblivious to the real-world economics that as a leader of this Medical Center are on my mind every day. Oblivious to the fact that we receive much less revenue from our competitors. And oblivious to the distinct possibility that Washington may enact major health reform that could threaten the entire healthcare delivery system," Michael Wagner, President and CEO of Tufts Medical Center and Floating Hospital for Children said.
Twitter: @BethJSanborn
