Essentia Moose Lake nurses vote to authorize strike after two years without contract  (Page 20)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Sam Fettig
(c) 612-741-0662
sam.fettig@mnnurses.org
Lauren Nielsen
(c) 651-376-9709
lauren.nielsen@mnnurses.org

Nurses have been working without a contract since Essentia purchased the facility in 2020 and executives refused to recognize nurses’ existing contract

Nurses voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike to demand a fair resolution to contract negotiations   

(Moose Lake) – August 17, 2022 – Yesterday, nurses with the Minnesota Nurses Association at Essentia Moose Lake voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike as they seek a fair contract to address under-staffing and retention at the hospital and to keep nurses at the bedside providing care to the community. This vote comes one day after 15,000 nurses in the Twin Cities and Twin Ports also voted to overwhelmingly authorize a strike.

“We are voting to strike because our patients deserve better and we deserve better. Essentia has ignored our pleas to focus on staff retention,” said Tristin Eastvold, RN. “Having a fair contract that gives nurses a voice on safe staffing, scheduling and fair compensation retains staff. So far, every action we have taken has been ignored. We feel we have no other choice than to strike.”

Moose Lake nurses continue to seek a fair first contract with Essentia Health, who purchased the hospital two years ago and immediately refused to recognize nurses’ existing contract. As a result of refusal by Essentia Health executives to recognize the nurses’ prior contract, Moose Lake nurses have lost bonuses, earned sick leave hours, and company retirement contributions, despite promises that the acquisition would benefit the community. Nurses at Moose Lake previously held an informational picket in June in their effort to pressure Essentia executives to settle a fair contract.

“We have been bargaining with Essentia for a fair contract for two years. We are fighting for a contract that will help ensure retention of our nurses, a contract that will align with other facilities in our service area to keep experienced nurses,” said Sarah Lambert, RN. “Years without a contract and the resulting wage freeze has led to such high turnover and staff dissatisfaction, it is time for this to end! The treatment of the nurses in Moose Lake by Essentia has shown that they are a company who cannot exhibit their own core values, a company that clearly does not care about the communities it serves.”

Contract negotiations between nurses and Essentia have been ongoing for more than two years, as Essentia executives force nurses to re-negotiate for standard contract language they had previously worked under for decades. Currently, executives at the health system have refused nurses’ requests for language that would address shift scheduling, allowing nurses more input and predictability in their schedules as they balance a demanding career with other responsibilities. The holdup over scheduling means that executives still will not engage on the topic of wages and compensation with the Moose Lake nurses, despite two years of drawn-out talks.

The anti-union corporate healthcare policies pushed by Essentia executives are driving many Moose Lake nurses to leave the jobs and patient care they love. Right now, Moose Lake has a higher turnover rate than other Essentia facilities in the region. In negotiations with Essentia on topics like scheduling, staffing, and compensation, Moose Lake nurses are seeking to address the understaffing and retention issues at the hospital to keep nurses at the bedside and put patients and community care before corporate healthcare policies and profits.

Nurses voted overwhelmingly to authorize the strike, which required a supermajority of votes to pass. The vote authorizes nurse negotiation leaders to call a strike following a 10-day notice to hospital employers.

###

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Sam Fettig
(c) 612-741-0662
sam.fettig@mnnurses.org

Lauren Nielsen
(c) 651-376-9709
lauren.nielsen@mnnurses.org

Nurses have been working without a contract since Essentia purchased the facility in 2020 and executives refused to recognize nurses’ existing contract

Nurses voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike to demand a fair resolution to contract negotiations   

(Moose Lake) – August 17, 2022 – Yesterday, nurses with the Minnesota Nurses Association at Essentia Moose Lake voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike as they seek a fair contract to address under-staffing and retention at the hospital and to keep nurses at the bedside providing care to the community.
… Read more about: Essentia Moose Lake nurses vote to authorize strike after two years without contract   »

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Sam Fettig
(c) 612-741-0662
sam.fettig@mnnurses.org

Lauren Nielsen
(o) 651-414-2862
(c) 651-376-9709
lauren.nielsen@mnnurses.org

Nurses in Twin Cities and Twin Ports nurses are now working without contracts as hospital executives refuse solutions to short-staffing, retention and better patient care

As many hospital CEOs continue to take significant raises on multi-million-dollar salaries, executives offer nurses just 4 percent in average annual wage increases  

 
VIDEO [METRO, DULUTH]: Watch video from this morning of nurse leaders responding to the results of the strike vote.
… Read more about: 15,000 nurses authorize strike as they fight for fair contracts that put Patients Before Profits  »

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Sam Fettig
(c) 612-741-0662
sam.fettig@mnnurses.org

Lauren Nielsen
(o) 651-414-2862
(c) 651-376-9709
lauren.nielsen@mnnurses.org

Nurses in Twin Cities and Twin Ports nurses are now working without contracts as hospital executives refuse solutions to short-staffing, retention and better patient care

As many hospital CEOs continue to take significant raises on multi-million-dollar salaries, executives offer nurses just 4 percent in average annual wage increases

Nurses with MNA will hold media availabilities in St. Paul and Duluth tomorrow morning to respond to vote results – details included below 

… Read more about: BREAKING: 15,000 nurses authorize strike, hold media availability tomorrow  »
(St.

MEDIA ADVISORY

Contact: Sam Fettig
(c) 612-741-0662
sam.fettig@mnnurses.org

Lauren Nielsen
(o) 651-414-2862
(c) 651-376-9709
lauren.nielsen@mnnurses.org

Results of vote are expected late tonight on whether to authorize a strike
(St. Paul and Duluth) – August 15, 2022 – Tomorrow, Tuesday, August 16, 2022, nurses with the Minnesota Nurses Association in St. Paul and Duluth will respond to the results of today’s vote by 15,000 nurses on whether to authorize a strike
… Read more about: MNA nurses in St. Paul and Duluth to respond to strike vote for 15,000 nurses seeking fair contracts that put Patients Before Profits   », as they continue in their fight for fair contracts to hold healthcare executives accountable to put patients before profits.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

Contact: Sam Fettig
(c) 612-741-0662
sam.fettig@mnnurses.org

Lauren Nielsen
(o) 651-414-2862
(c) 651-376-9709
lauren.nielsen@mnnurses.org

Endorsees include incumbents and candidates in open races who have pledged to work with nurses on key issues like the Keeping Nurses at the Bedside Act 

(St. Paul) – August 12, 2022 – Nurses of the Minnesota Nurses Association today endorsed seven candidates in races for the Minnesota Legislature, including candidates running in open races and incumbent candidates recognized for their various levels of leadership and partnership with nurses to make progress on issues important to nurses and patients.
… Read more about: Nurses endorse seven additional candidates in state legislative races  »

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Sam Fettig
(c) 612-741-0662
sam.fettig@mnnurses.org

Lauren Nielsen
(o) 651-414-2862
(c) 651-376-9709
lauren.nielsen@mnnurses.org

Nurses in Twin Cities and Twin Ports are now working without contracts as hospital executives refuse solutions to short-staffing, retention and better patient care

VIDEO: Video of today’s announcement can be found at this link.

(St. Paul) – August 11, 2022 – Nurses with the Minnesota Nurses Association today announced that they will hold a strike vote on Monday, August 15, 2022, as 15,000 nurses in the Twin Cities and Twin Ports fight for fair contracts to hold healthcare executives accountable to put patients before profits.
… Read more about: 15,000 nurses to hold strike vote in fight for fair contracts that put Patients Before Profits   »

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Sam Fettig
(c) 612-741-0662
sam.fettig@mnnurses.org

Lauren Nielsen
(o) 651-414-2862
(c) 651-376-9709
lauren.nielsen@mnnurses.org

In new survey of Hennepin nurses, 81 percent believe patient safety may be at risk

(St. Paul) – August 10, 2022 – A new survey of Hennepin Healthcare nurses with the Minnesota Nurses Association highlights rising levels of violence against nurses and patients and identifies under-staffing and unresponsive management as the top barriers to reporting and resolving the problem. In the report, 97 percent of nurses observed workplace violence or harassment in the last two years, but just over half of respondents had reported these incidents to their employer.
… Read more about: Hennepin Healthcare nurses report rising violence against nurses and patients, cite under-staffing, unresponsive management as barriers in new survey  »

MEDIA ADVISORY

Contact: Sam Fettig
(c) 612-741-0662
sam.fettig@mnnurses.org
Lauren Nielsen
(o) 651-414-2862
(c) 651-376-9709
lauren.nielsen@mnnurses.org
15,000 Twin Cities and Twin Ports nurses are now working without contracts as hospital executives refuse solutions to short-staffing, retention and better patient care

(St. Paul) – August 10, 2022 – Tomorrow, Thursday, August 11, 2022, nurses with the Minnesota Nurses Association will announce plans for collective action in their fight for fair contracts to hold healthcare executives accountable to put patients before profits. The planned action comes as 15,000 nurses in the Twin Cities and Twin Ports work without contracts due to hospital executives’ refusal to negotiate with nurses over solutions to the crises of short-staffing, retention and patient care that the same executives’ corporate healthcare policies created.
… Read more about: MNA nurses to announce plans for collective action in fight for fair contracts that put Patients Before Profits   »

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

Contact: Sam Fettig
(c) 612-741-0662
sam.fettig@mnnurses.org

Chronic short staffing and poor retention by hospital executives contribute to more adverse events for patients

Total adverse events and those which caused harm to patients have increased for years, pandemic impacts amplified systemic issues in Minnesota hospitals

(St. Paul) – August 3, 2022 – A new report released today by the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) highlights worsening patient impacts in Minnesota hospitals as the crisis of short staffing and retention continues unabated and unresolved by hospital executives. The new report documents increases in the total number of adverse events suffered by Minnesota patients in 2021, as well as in the number of events which caused harm to patients.
… Read more about: New MDH Report Shows Worsening Patient Impacts as Staffing, Retention Crisis Continues  »

NOTE: Release has been updated since this morning to now include video, quotations, and background from the action Twin Ports nurses held this afternoon.

Contact: Sam Fettig
(c) 612-741-0662
sam.fettig@mnnurses.org

While hospital executives make millions, crisis in hospitals worsens on their watch

VIDEO [PART 1, PART 2]: Watch the press conference Twin Cities nurses held this morning.
VIDEO [LINK]: Watch the press conference Twin Ports nurses held this afternoon.

(St. Paul) – August 2, 2022 – Nurses with the Minnesota Nurses Association at seven hospitals in the Twin Cities and Twin Ports today announced that they have voted “No Confidence” in their CEOs and other top executives.
… Read more about: UPDATED: Nurses at seven Twin Cities, Twin Ports hospitals vote “No Confidence” in leadership as retention and care crisis worsens  »