After more than 25 hours at the bargaining table on April 17 and 18—and with over 100 nurses packing the room —management still refused to deliver a fair deal.
Despite seeing our unity and hearing directly from your bargaining team, management doubled down with a “last, best, and final” offer that falls far short of what St. Joe’s nurses deserve. Their proposal:

• Eliminates daily double time for all nurses
• Implements 6-hour shifts without essential guardrails
• Offers no meaningful improvements from the rejected tentative agreement

While management accepted our wage proposal — $4.25/hour in year 1, followed by 3.25% and 3% increases in years two and three — but wages mean a lot less when they’re swallowed by unchecked increases in healthcare costs. Management also offered to keep EIB as it currently exists with no revisiting it during this contract. We’ve said it before, and we said it again in the room: nurses need real relief, not empty numbers.

With dozens of nurses remaining in the room late on Friday evening, we rejected management’s “final” offer, which was contingent on the bargaining team recommending the deal and the bargaining unit ratifying it. We’ll see what happens after hundreds of nurses, community members, and our labor allies hit the picket line on April 29.
Have questions about negotiations, the picket, or anything else? Come to the Sip N Chat tonight at 1630, you can join by following this link.

Our Response to Management’s Message

On Saturday, management sent a hospital-wide email filled with misleading claims and half-truths. They cherry-picked wage figures and ignored the real harm their insurance changes are causing. The message was designed to divide us.

We responded with an open letter that tells the truth. You can read it here.

Informational Picket – April 29

We told management that if they didn’t bring a fair deal, we would walk. Now it’s time to back that up with action.

Date: Tuesday, April 29
 Time: 6 – 9 AM and 11 AM – 1 PM
 Rally: Noon
 Location: Intersection of Squalicum and Ellis Streets

Bring your friends, your family, your neighbors, and your voice. If you’re working, come out on your meal or rest break. If you’re denied a break, file an ADO. This is our moment to show management that nurses don’t back down.

Sign-Making Party

Join us to get creative and ready for the line.

Location: Lost Giants Cider Company, 1200 Meador Ave, Bellingham
 Date: Sunday, April 27
 Time: 2 – 6 PM

We’ve already seen some powerful and creative signs. Let’s keep that momentum going.

Call Units Town Halls

Negotiations may be front and center, but we are still working on every issue that impacts nurses, including serious concerns in call units. Join us for a virtual town hall to talk about what you’re seeing and how we can address it together.

Tuesday, April 22 – Meeting link
 Thursday, April 24 – Meeting link

Solidarity is how we win. Show up. Speak out. Stand strong. We’ll see you on the line.

In solidarity,
Laura Bayes, Robin Cully, Jenn Engelhart, Rhonda Tull, Tracy Pullar, Amber Pouley, Jen Hampton, Kristin Malmo, Errin Hull, Kelly Carroll, and Jessica Moran

Questions about the picket, negotiations, or anything else? Message your nurse rep Jared at JRichardson@WSNA.org.