No strike today: UMass Memorial, nurses reach pact

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.bizjournals.com/boston/blog/mass_roundup/2013/05/umass-memorial-nurses-strike-averted.html

May 23, 2013, 6:42am EDT

Galen Moore
Web Editor-
Boston Business Journal

UMass Memorial Medical Center and the Massachusetts Nurses Association reached an agreement late last night, averting a threatened strike set to begin today.

The hospital and the union, which represents 1,100 nurses at UMass Memorial, agreed to a three-year contract, the Worcester Telegram & Gazette reports. Provisions include limits on the number of patients assigned to one nurse during a shift – a piece nurses had publicly campaigned for, describing staffing levels at the hospital as unsafe.

“It wasn't about the money,” nurse Ellen Smith told about two dozen cheering nurses shortly after midnight, according to the T&G. “It was about the staffing. We'll get the money in the next contract.”

[friendly_iconoclast]

1. Go MNA!