A nurses’ labor union has reached a tentative agreement Thursday for their 2025 contract with hospital employers in the Twin Cities and avoided a strike after nearly four months of negotiations, according to union officials.
The Minnesota Nurses Association, which represents more than 15,000 members in the Twin Cities and Duluth, announced the agreement, which adding that nurses “faced an uphill battle this year” due to hospital budget constraints.
Union officials said in a Thursday statement that those constraints are largely driven by impending federal Medicaid cuts expected as part of President Donald Trump’s “one big beautiful bill” federal spending act. The House gave final approval to the bill Thursday. Around 1.16 million Minnesotans receive Medicaid benefits, adding up to $12 billion in the state in 2023.
Contract negotiations happened with officials in seven health systems, including Allina Health, Aspirus St. Luke’s, Children’s Minnesota, Essentia Health, M Health Fairview, HealthPartners and North Memorial Health.
“We are pleased to announce that Allina Health and Minnesota Nurses Association reached a tentative agreement early this morning. The settlement is now subject to ratification by union membership,” Allina Health officials said in a statement Thursday.
While nurses in the Twin Cities have reached a tentative agreement, nurses in Duluth are prepared to strike Tuesday, with advanced practice providers joining Thursday.
“Nurses have always said this fight isn’t just about contracts, it’s about safe care,” said MNA President Chris Rubesch, a nurse with Essentia Health in Duluth. “We heard from our members loud and clear: staffing levels were the number one priority in these negotiations, for the first time ahead of wages and it will continue to be a principal concern as we move forward caring for our patients in the future.”
Changes and updates from the 2022 contract include new language around nurses’ breaks based on state law, tools to address workplace violence and a 3% raise in the first year, 4% in the second and 3% in the third.
“We’ve been fighting an uphill battle,” Rubesch said. “The campaign may be over for now in the metro, but the fight for safe staffing and patient care is far from over.”
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