Unionized nurses at Brigham and Women’s Hospital reached a tentative contract deal with management late Wednesday night, just hours before an open-ended strike was set to begin.
The deal between the union’s bargaining committee and one of Mass General Brigham’s two flagship hospitals would provide Brigham’s roughly 4,000 nurses with pro-rated bonuses and new guidelines around the hospital’s use of temporary nurses. It must still be voted on by rank-and-file members, who last month rejected an earlier tentative contract forwarded by the committee.
“I’m incredibly proud of the Brigham nurses who stood strong to protect the world-class patient care we provide,” said Kelly Morgan, union chair and longtime Brigham labor and delivery nurse. “We secured this agreement with the help of countless community members, patients, unions and elected officials who supported us for many months. By standing together, we protected patients and the future of union nursing care at the Brigham.”
Much of the dispute centered on wages. The union had been asking for a 3 percent raise for the first six months of the contract and a 4 percent raise for the next 12 months. The hospital previously wasn’t offering any new across-the-board raise, but noted that nurses already receive a 5 percent step increase on the yearly anniversary of their hiring until they reach two decades of service.
Under the tentative agreement, effective Nov. 15, nurses at the top of the wage scale will receive an additional 2.5 percent, while all other nurses will receive a $1,000 bonus pro-rated based on their hours worked. Beginning Sept. 30, 2027, the wage scale will add another top step with a 2.5 percent increase.
Before the deal, the members of the Massachusetts Nurses Association had been preparing to walk off the job Thursday at 7 a.m. and forgo paychecks and Brigham’s contributions to their health insurance premiums. MGB had lined up temporary nurses to fill in for them.
The potential resolution of the labor dispute relieved many in Boston health care. Patients, caregivers, and government officials were concerned that a strike could drag on and disrupt care at a time when hospitals are navigating looming federal cuts to Medicaid and other financial challenges.
“We deeply value our Brigham nurses and believe this agreement recognizes their important contributions while supporting the long-term sustainability of our hospital and our ability to care for our patients and communities,” Brigham said in a statement.
Last month, the union chapter rejected the hospital’s “best and final” contract offer after tense negotiations over the past year. The union had postponed an open-ended strike scheduled for Oct. 14 to let members vote on management’s earlier offer.
The strike was then rescheduled for November and had no end date, carrying far higher stakes than a walkout held on July 8. Immediately following that one-day strike, the hospital locked out the nurses for four more days, saying it was contractually obligated to provide its fill-in nurses with five days of work.
Leading up to the potential open-ended strike, the hospital lined up temporary nurses again and said it would be ready to continue providing top-notch care with minimal to no disruptions to patients.
Nevertheless, both sides said repeatedly that they wanted to avoid a strike and agreed to resume negotiations earlier this week. The nurses association was readying a fund to cover some of nurses’ lost wages if a walkout occurred.
The last time the union staged an open-ended strike in Massachusetts was more than five years ago at Worcester’s Saint Vincent Hospital, which is owned by the for-profit company Tenet Healthcare. That strike began in March 2021, lasted 301 days, and involved about 800 nurses.
Looming over the impasse were strained finances. MGB says the state’s largest health care system must bolster its operating margin and last month began making an unspecified number of layoffs and program changes. Nurses argue they need to be paid more given inflation and the high cost of living in Boston.
Before the deal, Brigham nurses started at $86,700 annually, and those with two decades of service earned at least $220,000, according to MGB. Nearly one-third of the local, or 1,322 nurses, earned the maximum amount, MGB said, making them among the highest paid in the state.
Over the past five fiscal years, Brigham said, nurses’ base wages have increased by an average of 55 percent.
In addition to differences over wages, the union said it was demanding that the new contract provide more affordable health insurance options.
The potential deal preserves these health insurance options and addresses concerns about the use of temporary nurses by the hospital. Brigham will post 20 new nurse positions to help limit reliability on temporary nurses, and the hospital must provide the union with rationale whenever more than 15 percent of full-time positions in a hospital unit are covered by temps.
“Importantly, the agreement was reached within the financial limits of the hospital’s last, best and final offer,” Brigham said in a statement.
The threat of the strike came as MGB says it is trying to strengthen its finances. About two weeks ago, the health system disclosed it was making an unspecified number of cuts to jobs and programs to save money.
The goal, says the state’s largest private employer, is for MGB to have an operating margin, or money made from its core work of taking care of patients, of about 1.5 percent of its operating revenue, or $300 million, by Sept. 30, 2028. In fiscal 2025, MGB reported an operating margin of $59 million, or 0.3 percent of operating revenue.
Jonathan Saltzman can be reached at jonathan.saltzman@globe.com. Marin Wolf can be reached at marin.wolf@globe.com.