A Minnesota nurses union voted Monday to authorize an unfair labor practice strike, as thousands of employees work without a contract and others face a contract expiration at the end of the month.
The Minnesota Nurses Association, which represents 15,000 nurses across 13 hospitals in the Twin Cities and Duluth area, says the vote gives negotiators the ability to call for a strike at any time, after providing a 10-day notice.
Nurses say hospitals have proposed policies that they disagree with, including capping sick time at 48 hours a year, implementing the ability to cancel shifts at any time, cutting overtime pay and replacing a longstanding affordable health care plan with a high-cost option.