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The nurses outside the hospital on the picket line seemed quite positive on the deal. Lots of cheering and a chant of “When we fought, we won!”.

Safety would not be explicitly enforceable under the contract. This seems to be where the nurses compromised the most to make gains elsewhere. The union had been calling for additional safety measures.

The union had cited disagreements with hospital leadership over including staffing and safety language in the contract. On staffing, there would, under the compromise, be wording added to the agreement. But it will stop short of defining staffing ratios.

The union did not take questions after announcing the agreement, but did share some details about the compromise. On pay, the nurses won an 8% increase over the 2-year agreement.

Nurses will begin voting on whether to ratify the agreement immediately. Union leadership hopes to complete the vote by midnight. The strikers will return to work at 6:59 a.m. tomorrow following a press conference outside the hospital.

HAPPENING NOW.UnityPoint Health-Meriter nurses are announcing a tentative bargaining agreement reached between their union, @SEIUWIS, and the hospital. The announcement caps off a 5-day strike for safer working conditions.

A member of the bargaining team I just spoke to says she believes Meriter leadership thought the union was bluffing about striking.

A Timelapse of the entire picket. The procession pauses to allow patients access to the hospital.

The nurses see themselves as fighting against industry pressures for fewer nurses to handle more patients. They are also concerned about their safety on the job. Examples given to me included aggressive people bringing knives into the hospital.

The day began with a walkout and a rally outside the hospital’s main entrance. The rally included remarks from the bargaining team who said management walked away from the table at the most recent negotiating session.

Good morning from Meriter Hospital in Madison where today hundreds of nurses unionized with @SEIUWIS are going on strike to demand safer working conditions.

@SEIUWIS @IBEWLocal159 The elected leaders backing the nurses include Rep. Udell, Rep. Jacobson, Rep. Bare, and Sen. Roys. All are Democrats.

@SEIUWIS Rick Roeth from Teamsters 120 and Mitch Johnson with @IBEWLocal159 say their members stand in solidarity with the Meriter nurses. Johnson grew emotional recalling how hard his mother worked as a nurse.

@SEIUWIS Colin Gillis, a nurse at UW Health, sees the Meriter nurses’ struggle as linked to others in the profession. He thinks concessions made at Meriter will ripple out with other health system participating in a race to the bottom for working conditions.