BMC nurses vote to authorize three-day strike over wages, staffing

Nearly 2,000 nurses at Boston Medical Center (BMC) voted to authorize a three-day strike amid fraught contract negotiations, their union said Friday.

The decision received overwhelming support, with more than 90 percent of nurses in the union voting in favor of authorizing the strike, 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East said in a press release. The union cited “safety concerns, inadequate wages, and short-staffing” as contributing factors to a sense of “growing instability” at BMC.

“BMC nurses are fed up with getting by on wages and benefits that don’t keep up with the rising cost of living,” Kerry LaBarbera, emergency room registered nurse at BMC, said in the press release. “And we’re prepared to strike if necessary to win the wages we need to get by, the adequate staffing levels our patients deserve, and the safe workplaces our co-workers need.”

The current conditions at BMC don’t adequately meet the demands of the trauma center’s patient population, according to the union. Hospital management and nurses have been bargaining for more than six months, but the union claims that recent contract proposals are insufficient to train staff and fill critical vacancies.

The nurses working at BMC have one of the lowest starting wage rates across Boston-area hospitals, contributing to a higher turnover, the union said. Nurses claim that the hospital has become over-reliant on out-of-state traveling nurses, resulting in higher costs and a shortage of caregivers.

“Boston Medical Center has the busiest emergency room in New England, and nurses here care for a diverse set of patients with greater needs than other area hospitals,” Cari Medina, the union’s executive vice president, said in the press release. “BMC needs to provide higher wages and a safer workplace to attract and retain more permanent nurses to meet the needs of Massachusetts families.”

Despite the union’s vote, no strike has been guaranteed. Federal labor laws require a 10-day notice prior to a hospital strike, and no notice has been issued at this time.

The union, which is set to resume bargaining with BMC management Sept. 25, stressed that the strike is a necessary measure to turn the tide of contract negotiations in their favor.

“A strike is a last resort, and we’d prefer to settle a contract that lets us care for our patients,” LaBarbera said in the press release. “But BMC management’s refusal to deliver is forcing us to take this step.”