FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Laurie Laker
(c) 612-741-0662
laurie.laker@mnnurses.org
(St. Paul) – December 3, 2024 – The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has validated what nurses have been saying for years by citing Abbott Northwestern Hospital with over a dozen “serious” violations of workplace violence.
While nurses have been raising the alarm about the lack of workplace violence protections for some time, the recent OSHA violations span over a 6-month period from December of 2023 to May of 2024. According to OSHA, “a serious violation exists when the workplace hazard could cause an accident or illness that would most likely result in death or serious physical harm, unless the employer did not know or could not have known of the violation.” OSHA has levied a penalty of $83,600 after their investigation revealed alarming levels of workplace violence at the hospital, which has put nurses and other healthcare workers at significant risk.
Workplace violence at Abbott Northwestern has surged dramatically in recent years, despite MNA nurses consistently raising the alarm. Between 2021 and 2023, the hospital saw over 46 reportable incidents of workplace violence. However, in just the first five months of 2024, that number skyrocketed to 198 incidents, representing an 800% increase. As a result, Abbott Northwestern’s rate of workplace violence now stands at 295 incidents per 10,000 workers—far exceeding the national average of 6 per 10,000 workers, and even surpassing rates seen in correctional facilities.
Despite repeated calls from MNA nurses for additional safety measures—including increased security presence, the creation of a Behavioral Emergency Response Team (BERT), and mandatory workplace violence prevention training—Allina Health has failed to take adequate action to protect its staff. The fine issued by OSHA rightly highlights the hospital’s ongoing negligence in addressing these dangerous conditions, however the penalty is only a small step toward holding Allina Health accountable for its failure to act.
“The findings and subsequent OSHA fines show that Abbott doesn’t have an adequate violence prevention program to train and protect our nurses to defend themselves from the workplace violence that they experience every single day,” says Jen Stanerson, Emergency Department RN and MNA Chair at Abbott Northwestern.
“The employer has declined to make violence education mandatory, and as a result they won’t pay nurses overtime to receive violence prevention and education training that would help prevent and deescalate the numerous incidents nurses are facing at Abbott day in and day out.”
“It’s also worth noting that every single one of these charges came about due to individual reports from individual nurses here at Abbott, who’ve shown incredible bravery to share their stories and submit their concerns on behalf their colleagues and the workplace as a whole.”
Nurses continue to advocate for immediate and comprehensive measures to address workplace violence at Abbott Northwestern and ensure the safety of nurses and other healthcare workers. Nurses deserve a workplace free from violence, and patients deserve care from healthcare workers who can do their jobs without fear of injury. Allina must take immediate and meaningful steps to protect its employees and restore safety to its hospital units. MNA nurses will not stop fighting until our nurses and patients are given the protections they deserve.