A 17-hour negotiating session orchestrated by Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton at his residence resulted in a tentative agreement between Minneapolis-based Allina Health and its nurses, according to a Star Tribune report.
Terms of the deal weren't immediately available to the Star Tribune. However, the publication was able to get a statement from Gov. Dayton's office, thanking the two sides "for working to reach this tentative agreement, which will allow them to resume the quality healthcare that Minnesotans need and deserve."
The more than 4,000 striking nurses from five Allina hospitals still have to vote on the deal, according to the report. Nurses, represented by the Minnesota Nurses Association, have rejected three prior contracts. However, the union will recommend nurses approve the most recent contract, according to the report, which cites a statement from the governor's office.
Allina and nurses have been in negotiations since February, according to the report. Earlier rejection votes led to a one-week strike in June and an open-ended walkout on Labor Day. Minnesota hospitals affected by the strike were Abbott Northwestern Hospital and Phillips Eye Institute in Minneapolis, United Hospital in St. Paul, Mercy Hospital in Coon Rapids and Unity Hospital in Fridley.
The two strikes together surpass a state record 1984 strike that lasted 38 days.
The Star Tribune reports that recent negotiations have mostly involved a federal mediator, and Monday's meeting at the governor's residence was the first face-to-face session since September for the two sides. Gov. Dayton and Minnesota Lt. Governor Tina Smith had asked representatives from Allina and the MNA to meet at the governor's residence to try and reach an agreement.
A key sticking point in the dispute between the two sides has been the nurses' health insurance.
Allina wanted to eliminate the nurses' union-backed health plans, which include high premiums but low or no deductibles, and move the nurses to its corporate plans, reports the Star Tribune. Allina has estimated that eliminating the nurses' union-backed health plans would save the health system $10 million per year.
Last month, Allina agreed to 24-hour security staffing in its emergency departments and to a joint committee that would address staffing issues, according to the Star Tribune. Nurses, the report states, agreed to phase out the four union health plans and move to Allina's company plans. However, the union wanted some administrative control over Allina's plans to make sure cost and quality levels were maintained, something Allina didn't agree to, according to the report.
The offer nurses rejected Oct. 3 would have retained two of the union's health plans until 2020, but would have given nurses financial incentives to switch to Allina's plans earlier, reports the Star Tribune.
The dispute has been costly for Allina, which incurred $20.4 million of expenses related to the seven-day strike in June. According to the report, the costs of the current strike have easily doubled the costs from the June strike.
The MNA also contends 200 nurses have left the Allina system since June, according to the report. Additionally, according to the report, Allina claims more than 630 nurses have returned to work as the strike has continued.
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