Joliet nurses reach tentative deal with Ascension St. Joseph after year of bargaining
JOLIET, Ill. - After a year at the bargaining table, the nurses' union in Joliet reached a tentative agreement with Ascension St. Joseph over the weekend.
The union will review and vote on the new contract over the next two weeks, the Illinois Nurses Association said Monday.
The tentative deal comes after a bargaining session on Tuesday, May 7 that continued through Thursday with proposals passed back and forth.
On Thursday, the union said they needed a response by end of day on Friday to avert a potential joint strike with the nurses of Ascension Genesys in Flint, Michigan.
The nurses issued a 10-day notice that they would join Flint at 8 p.m. on Friday. Ascension sent an improved offer on Saturday with the condition that the nurses pull their strike notice.
According to the union, the new deal ensures that nurses will only be pulled to areas of the hospital outside their specialty on a voluntary basis. It also honors the most senior nurses at the hospital with additional paid time off and contains a lump sum payment for all nurses.
"There are some significant wins for us in this deal," said Sarah Hurd, an organizer with the Illinois Nurses Association, "But ultimately, this choice must be made by the majority of nurses working day in and day out at this hospital. They will decide for themselves democratically whether this is a contract they can work under for the next three years."
The deal will not be officially ratified until it has been voted on and approved by the full bargaining unit. The vote will be finalized before June 1.
