Pottstown (Pa.) Hospital nurses voted Oct. 8 to ratify a three-year contract agreement, The Mercury reported.
The agreement covers 325 nurses represented by the Pennsylvania Association of Staff Nurses and Allied Professionals.
It includes across-the-board pay increases of 5 percent, 3 percent and 3 percent in each contract year, respectively, according to the union. But Andrew Gaffney, union staff representative, told The Mercury the increases could be higher or lower based on wage scales. The agreement also addresses staffing, patient care and rest time for operating room nurses.
Both sides were pleased with the deal.
"Nurses stood strong together and forced the hospital to back down and respect the nursing staff. We are proud in what we have been able to achieve in our first contract," said Bernie Moser, RN, from the hospital's maternity unit.
Pottstown Hospital's owner, West Reading, Pa.-based Tower Health, told The Mercury: "The agreement is consistent with Tower Health's nursing and human resource policies and practices throughout our six hospitals. It provides a strong foundation on which the hospital, our nursing staff and all our employees can work together continuing and strengthening Pottstown Hospital's service to our patients and the community."
This is the first agreement for nurses from the hospital, which Tower Health acquired from Franklin, Tenn.-based Community Health Systems in 2017.
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