More than 500 workers at Dallas-based Steward Health Care's Morton Hospital in Taunton, Mass., and Steward Holy Family Hospital at Merrimack in Haverhill, Mass., have ratified agreements with management, according to the union that represents them.
The Massachusetts Nurses Association announced Sept. 10 that 370 nurses and healthcare professionals at Morton Hospital voted last week to ratify a new agreement, and 140 Holy Family Hospital nurses voted in August to do the same.
The Morton Hospital agreement covers the period of Jan. 1, 2020, to Oct. 31, 2021. It includes a pension consisting of a 5 percent contribution by the hospital calculated on wages up to 40 hours in a week with no employee match, the union said. Morton nurses and healthcare professionals on the step scale will also receive a 4 percent wage increase from now through the next 12 months, in addition to 4.5 percent step increases annually for workers. The Massachusetts Nurses Association said Morton Hospital nurses and healthcare professionals at the top of the scale will receive a 5.5 percent wage increase over the contract period.
The Holy Family Hospital agreement covers the period of Nov. 2, 2019, to Nov. 1, 2022. Contract provisions include "significant gains in safe staffing to improve patient care conditions," the union said. Other provisions cited by the Massachusetts Nurses Association include pay raises, pension enhancements, Veterans Day as a paid holiday, increased pay differentials and improved sick leave protections.
The union praised the agreements overall, saying they "will improve patient care and working conditions at their hospitals while also valuing nurses for their hard work and dedication during the COVID-19 pandemic."
In a statement provided to Becker's Hospital Review by Steward Health Care, Morton Hospital President Heidi Taylor said: "We're pleased by the continued partnership we have with our employees in providing world-class care in communities across Massachusetts."