MARQUETTE, Mich. (WZMQ) – After months of bargaining, Michigan Nurses Association (MNA) techs at UP Health System-Marquette reached a tentative contract agreement with the employer late on Wednesday, September 3.
The agreement includes competitive wage increases, improvements in health insurance, and other gains.
“Our team fought hard to make significant progress on wages and health insurance to help not only attract new staff but, just as important, also keep the techs who currently work here,” said Josh Bowman, a medical laboratory scientist at the hospital, President of the Marquette Ancillary Staff and Technologists (MAST), and an MNA board member. “We want our hospital to be the best environment possible for workers as well as patients. The support from our community and our MNA nurse colleagues was amazing and helped us stay strong throughout negotiations. We can all be proud of this milestone.”
The agreement includes the following provisions:
• Guaranteed wage increases of 18.75% over four years and three months (the length of the contract) to recruit and retain staff, including increases to premiums and differentials
• A switch to the same health insurance that the hospital’s RNs receive
• Improved language around incentive shifts
MAST’s tentative agreement is not approved until members vote on it. That will happen on September 11, rather than the previously announced strike authorization vote.
“Reaching this tentative agreement with MAST demonstrates our commitment to the well-being of our workforce and long-term sustainability,” UPHS-Marquette CEO Tonya Darner said. “Through constructive dialogue, we arrived at a solution that balances the needs of our staff, our patients and the communities we serve — all in alignment with our mission of making communities healthier.”
Both MAST and the RNs at the hospital had been bargaining with UPHS since March. The unions are both part of the Michigan Nurses Association (MNA). The RNs reached a tentative agreement last week and are voting on ratification September 4 and 5.
“These agreements prove that solidarity works,” said Christina Hanson, RN, President of the RN Staff Council at the hospital. “As we move forward, we are united with MAST in enforcing these contracts and holding the employer to them. We want to thank our community for supporting us. We all advocated for the best working conditions for hospital workers and their families, which ultimately leads to the best care possible for our patients.”
WZMQ 19 will have an interview with a MAST representative on our September 5 newscasts. For more background information on this story, click here.
