Press Release: 9/18/2026

Boston Medical Center MNA Nurses Vote to Authorize Three-Day Strike

 

Registered nurses at Boston Medical Center’s main hospital campus, represented by the Massachusetts Nurses Association (MNA), have voted overwhelmingly to authorize their bargaining committee to call a three-day strike if necessary as they push for a new contract that addresses patient safety, low wages and chronic understaffing.

The 160 BMC nurses voted 94% in favor of authorizing a strike. The vote was scheduled and held in solidarity with more than 2,000 RNs represented by 1199SEIU Healthcare Workers East, who are also seeking a new contract and held their own successful strike vote last week. No strike has been scheduled. The RN bargaining committee will decide whether to set a strike date based on BMC’s conduct in upcoming negotiations. Before any strike could take place, the committee would provide the legally required 10-day notice.

BMC is Boston’s safety-net hospital and a Level I trauma center. Its nurses care for one of the city’s most diverse and underserved patient populations, including patients with high levels of chronic, unmet medical need, while working as some of the lowest-paid nurses in Boston. That gap undermines BMC’s ability to recruit and retain the staff needed to fulfill its mission of providing exceptional care without exception.

“We believe deeply in BMC’s mission and care deeply about the patients we serve, but that commitment should be valued, not used to justify paying nurses and advanced practice nurses less than our peers across Boston,” said Meredith Murphy, RN, a longtime BMC nurse and co-chair of the MNA local bargaining unit. “Being a safety-net hospital does not entitle BMC to a discount on nursing labor. To recruit and retain the experienced nurses our patients depend on, BMC must offer wages that are competitive with other Boston hospitals. Our patients deserve a stable, experienced nursing workforce, not a system that repeatedly relies on travelers and nurses working additional overtime to fill persistent staffing gaps.”

The nurses have been in negotiations for a new contract since May, with 10 sessions held to date. Key issues include competitive wages and a more affordable health insurance benefit that gives members appropriate access to providers.

“MNA nurses stand in solidarity with our fellow 1199SEIU nurses and all our fellow healthcare workers and are sending a clear message to BMC: The hospital cannot continue to underpay the staff who care for some of the sickest and most vulnerable patients in our community,” said Sue Sirrico, RN, chair of the nurses’ negotiating committee. “Wage proposals that leave BMC nurses the lowest-paid nurses in the city while increasing health care costs contribute to staffing shortages, undermine retention and create serious patient safety concerns. Fair, competitive wages are essential to recruiting and retaining experienced nurses and ensuring that our patients receive the safe, high-quality care they deserve.”

BMC nurse and negotiating committee member Ellen Whitman said a fair contract is essential for the future success of the facility. “After months of bargaining with minimal progress on wages and continued rejection of our other economic proposals, we are taking this step because BMC can and must do better. We want BMC to succeed, not just through this contract but for years to come. That means investing in the nurses and advanced practice nurses who will care for our patients and carry this mission forward.”

The strike votes by the two BMC unions represent a show of worker solidarity following two July informational pickets that drew support from thousands of nurses and physicians who have come together through the BMC Union Coalition. The coalition includes more than 3,000 caregivers, staff, physicians and nurses across the BMC system who are members of the MNA, 1199SEIU, SEIU 509, AFSCME BMC Local 1489 and SEIU’s Committee of Interns and Residents. The votes come as nurses and other clinicians across Boston, Massachusetts and the nation have authorized or carried out an unprecedented number of strikes in response to the growing corporatization of health care and a hospital management culture that fails to recognize and support frontline caregivers — a system that increasingly puts profits ahead of workers and patients.

The next negotiating session between the parties is scheduled for Sept. 28th.

 

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