Brigham and Women's Hospital nurses strike in Boston now largest walkout for nurses in Massachusetts history
Thousands of nurses at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston went on strike early Wednesday morning in the largest nurses strike in Massachusetts history.
The hospital said patient care will not be affected. It has hired nearly 1,300 replacement nurses to cover shifts for the next five days. The strike is scheduled for one day, but the nurses will be locked out for four more days. The hospital said that's because the replacement nurses are contracted for five days of work.
The crowd outside the hospital grew so large Boston Police shut down part of Francis Street in the Longwood medical area.
Mass General Brigham, which operates the hospital, has been negotiating two contracts for several months - one for the 4,000 nurses at Brigham and Women's and another for nearly 500 home health care workers. Both sides are stuck on pay.
The union that represents the nurses, the Massachusetts Nurses Association, said the hospital is proposing zero-percent raises.
The hospital said its nurses are some of the highest paid in the country, with an average salary of more than $147,000. The hospital also argues that their proposal keeps an annual five percent pay raise that's part of the wage scale, adding that their offer "appropriately recognizes our nurses' important contributions while balancing our responsibility to sustain patient care."
"We need to be inside taking care of our patients, not out here. This is on the Brigham, not on us," said union representative Jen Devincent.
Some patient families told WBZ-TV they're worried what the strike will do to the quality of care at the hospital.
"I'm terrified for my dad's care," said Peter Caikauskas. His father had a double lung transplant in February and is still at patient at the Brigham. "But I support the nurses 110 percent."
The hospital said the strike will not affect scheduled appointments unless patients are notified directly about a change.
The nurses strike and lockout is scheduled to end on Monday, July 13 at 7 a.m.
The home health care workers strike is set to end on Wednesday, July 15 at 8 a.m., the hospital said.
The Brigham has posted more information for patients and families on its website.
