COLDWATER, MI (WTVB) – Nurses have authorized their union leadership to call a strike at ProMedica Coldwater Regional Hospital.
The 110 members of the Branch County Independent Nurses Association authorized the strike in a vote this past Wednesday. The union membership has rejected three contract proposals brought forth by ProMedica.
The previous two and a half year contract for the registered nurses expired December 31, 2022. The two sides have been bargaining since September 28, and a federal mediator joined the talks in November.
Union president and nurse Mary Osborne says their main concern is what the nurses feel is ProMedica’s lack of effort in retaining current and recruiting new nurses, which has led to chronic short staffing.
Osborne says one surgical floor has been closed because of the lack of nurses, and union members are concerned over the safety of staff and patients.
She says their survey shows higher wages being paid for nurses at all surrounding hospitals, like Oaklawn Hospital in Marshall and Borgess Medical Center and Bronson Healthcare in Kalamazoo.
Osborne says ProMedica has lost 60 plus nurses in the past two and a half years, forcing the hospital to hire traveling nurses to cover many shifts.
In order to actually strike, the nurses union must file a 10 day notice with the hospital. They haven’t done that yet, as Osborne says they are weighing their options.
She says no new talks have been set.
