Nurses To Hold Informational Picket At Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

METHUEN, MA — Nurses will hold an informational picket Friday outside the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute as they are demanding "fair pay and equal benefits," according to a union statement. The picket comes after a federal mediator was called in to assist with negotiations between the Massachusetts Nurses Association and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute - Merrimack Valley.

The union said that the mediator was brought in as the hospital "refuses to help ensure high-quality patient care by agreeing to a fair nurse contract."

The informational picket will be Friday from 4 to 5:30 p.m.

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.

“Our nurses are dedicated to our patients and play a key role in providing advanced cancer and blood disorder treatments,” Kerrin Albert, an infusion RN said in a statement. “A fair nurse contract will give us a stronger voice in ensuring safe patient care conditions and the pay and benefits we need to retain the highly qualified nurses (the facility) needs.”

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute - Merrimack Valley opened in 2020 with 24 exam rooms and 32 infusion bays. The location offers expanded cancer and blood disorder care and outpatient services for adult patients in the region.

The MNA is the largest union and professional organization of nurses and healthcare professionals in Massachusetts, representing more than 25,000 members in healthcare facilities across the state.