Nurses At Dana Farber Cancer Institute Plan 1-Day Strike

METHUEN, MA — The Massachusetts Nurses Association has issued a one-day strike notice after the union and the Dana Farber Cancer Institute Merrimack Valley (DFCI – MV) failed to come to terms on an agreement.

Nurses represented by the union are "prepared to strike for 24 hours – and picket in front of DFCI – MV during regular clinic hours – after repeatedly trying to get Dana-Farber executives to reach reasonable compromises on key issues, including a competitive wage step scale and a commitment to maintaining benefits throughout the life of their contract," according to a union statement.

DFCI – MV nurses approved authorization to strike by a measure of 97% last month. The one-day strike will be Sept. 27.

Hospital officials responded in the following statement: "We are disappointed that despite Dana-Farber offering a generous compensation and benefit package and remaining at the table, the Merrimack Valley nurses and nurse practitioners are planning a one-day strike."

The hospital noted that it has been negotiating in good faith since December to create the first collective bargaining agreement with Merrimack Valley nurses. Last year, the National Labor Relations Board decided that the Merrimack Valley bargaining unit should be separate from the Dana-Farber Boston bargaining unit.

Another negotiation session is scheduled for Tuesday, and it's expected that a federal mediator will call nurses back for an additional negotiation session prior to the strike date.

The union alleges that the hospital has announced plans to shift its affiliation from Brigham and Women’s Hospital to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and "construct a freestanding inpatient cancer hospital."

"This plan will cost many millions of dollars, while DFCI refuses to make reasonable investments in its existing nurse and nurse practitioner workforce in Merrimack Valley," the union said in a statement.

Nurses who care for oncology patients at the facility voted to join the Massachusetts Nurses Association in July 2022. Nurses say they are seeking fair pay and benefits equal to the cancer institute's Boston location to maintain the staffing necessary to provide critical patient care.

“We are prepared to strike if necessary to protect cancer care quality and access for Merrimack Valley patients,” Kerrin Albert, Infusion RN at DFCI – MV, said in a statement. “We would prefer that Dana-Farber executives simply meet the needs of our nurses so we can maintain a stable workforce, but instead they have put us in this position to fully exercise our rights as union members.”

The hospital said in a statement that it remains "committed to working toward a fair and equitable agreement and look forward to continuing negotiations at the session scheduled next week."