Mercy Health nurses contract negotiations continue as both sides hope for agreement soon

LORAIN — Mercy Health nurses are hoping for a better incentive package out of their new contract with the hospital system. On Friday afternoon, registered nurses and union officials from the Service Employees International Union District 1199 gathered at Lorain Lighthouse United Methodist Church, rallying members' support ahead of continued contract negotiations on Monday. The RNs' current five-year contract is set to expire Wednesday, unless a new agreement is passed. Union organizer Geoff Davies said negotiations are at a "delicate state," but both sides are hoping for a fair agreement. "We're just trying to get a good agreement with them, good health insurance and good recognition," he said. "Keep (nurses) in Lorain, keep them from going to other places like Cleveland." The union represents about 450 registered nurses at the Lorain hospital — a different subset of Local 1199 represents STNAs, or staff at other Mercy Health/Bon Secours sites in Ohio, including Mercy Allen in Oberlin. The contract was set to expire six months ago, but the union agreed to extend it to avoid negotiations at the height of the pandemic, Davies said while handing out stickers and flyers to union members. The nurses are looking to either a three- or five-year contract, with stronger incentives to keep staff in Lorain, rather than losing nurses to health care systems in Cleveland, Columbus or out of state. While the workers aren't blaming Mercy for the national nurse shortage, they are hoping a new agreement will entice recent college grads to work in the International City, Davies said. Those incentives include better health care, higher pay for certain shifts like overnights, and having a wage incentive for teaching nurses as that is currently not available. Mercy Health spokeswoman Jennifer Robinson said in a statement that the hospital and SEIU have worked throughout the past eight negotiation sessions to "create a path forward for both the RN associates and the local health system." "The COVID-19 pandemic has proven the flexibility and agility of our health care workers and how Mercy Health is able to always provide care when and where people need it most. We are looking forward to reaching an agreement with our SEIU represented RNs that is rooted in our core values and allows for the ministry's future growth." Current negotiations are in a better place than when the nurses' health care plan was reopened as part of the contract in 2018. At that time, RNs, community supporters and fellow unions rallied outside Mercy Health in protest of changes to the staff's health care plans, which would have increased out-of-pocket costs, according to previous reporting. Davies said negotiations are not at that point, noting Friday's rally was a chance to reach union members when in-person meetings are still unable to happen amid the pandemic, while hosting a canned food drive for Second Harvest Food Bank. "Both sides are trying to work to an agreement and our relationship with Mercy has been a lot better," Davies said. "And we're hoping we can build on that so that we can get a good agreement." A majority of the union's membership must vote in favor of the contract once an agreement is reached. If not reached by Wednesday, members will remain under the expired contract until a new one is ratified. SEIU 1199 covers workers in West Virginia, Kentucky and Ohio. Mercy Health have been part of its union coverage since 1999, gaining their first contract in 2000. Contact Carissa Woytach at (440) 329-7245 or cwoytach@chroniclet.com.