St. Mary Nurses Agree to Contract

LANGHORNE, PA — Nurses at St. Mary Medical Center voted over the weekend to approve a new contract with the hospital.

The agreement, which came after more than a year of negotiations, includes an 18 percent pay increase over the next five years and gives nurses a voice in staffing issues, which they say will improve patient care.

"Nurses and healthcare professionals have worked tirelessly and selflessly sacrificed during the COVID-19 pandemic at great personal risk to themselves, and they will continue to be called on to do so for many months to come," said Maureen May, president of the Pennsylvania Association of Staff Nurses and Allied Professionals.

"With the resolution of this contract fight as the virus surge continues in Bucks County and the greater Philadelphia area, the needs of our dedicated frontline workers have been acknowledged and respected and their patient communities are further protected. We are thrilled."

The contract's wage increases are annual. It also addresses issues like benefits, training and paid time off, according to St. Mary officials. In a written statement, the hospital's ownership said the staffing agreement gives nurses a voice "while preserving the hospital's right and authority to make all staffing decisions."

"We at St. Mary Medical Center believe this contract is good news for our nurses, colleagues and community," said St. Mary President Lawrence Brilliant. "We look forward to working together to fulfill our shared mission to be a transforming and healing presence for those we serve."

The roughly 800 nurses at St. Mary voted last year to join the union and this is its first contract with St. Mary owners, Trinity Health Mid-Atlantic.

They have picketed several times during what have been called sometimes tense negotiations and announced a two-day strike last month, saying the hospital was denying them adequate staffing to properly handle the patient load during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In response, Trinity Health brought in temporary nurses and locked out union members for an additional three days.

The nurses say their new contract provides enforcement to make sure the hospital hires and schedules enough nurses. Under the plan, nurses are guaranteed across-the-board pay increases, plus increases when they move up a step on a wage scale.

Nurses on the scale will see an average increase of 5 percent when the contract starts, with annual increases of 3 percent, 3 percent, 4 percent and 3 percent to follow.

"After more than a year of negotiations, I’m excited to have this done — to have the contract ratified and to move forward doing what we do best, caring for our patients, especially in this time of great need."

According to St. Mary, an overwhelming 96 percent of nurses voted in favor of the contract.