Duluth nurses avoid strike after reaching tentative deal with employers
DULUTH, Minn. (FOX 9) - Nurses at Essentia Twin Ports in Duluth reached a tentative deal with employers on July 4, avoiding a strike.
Essentia nurses avoid strike
What we know:
According to the Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA), acute care hospital nurses at Essentia Twin Ports have reached a tentative deal with employers, averting a strike.
Nurses will vote on whether to ratify the agreement in the upcoming weeks. Nurses in the Twin Cities also reached a tentative deal on July 3, avoiding a strike.
READ MORE: Twin Cities nurses reach deal to avoid strike, Duluth contract unsettled
The backstory:
Nurses across the Twin Cities and Duluth started a campaign in March to start contract talks with seven major hospitals, including Allina Health, Aspirus St. Luke's, Children's Minnesota, Essentia Health, M Health Fairview, HealthPartners and North Memorial Health.
The main focus was on patient safety and staffing levels.
What's included in the new deal
Dig deeper:
The deal comes with updated staffing language, which includes a one-year freeze on reductions of current staffing ratios.
Nurses will also get a 9.75% wage increase spread over three years, MNA said in an announcement.
MNA says that nurses also "fought off" Essentia's Management Rights clause, and protected Labor Management Committee language.
What's next:
Although nurses in the Twin Cities and Duluth have reached deals, clinics in the Twin Ports area, including Essentia 1st Street Clinic, 2nd Street Clinic, 3rd Street Clinic, Superior Clinic, Solvay Hospice House, and Miller Hill Surgery Center, still have an Unfair Labor Practices strike on July 8.