Brigham nurses and MGB Home Care clinicians issue strike notices after MGB refuses to settle fair contracts that protect patient care and support the healthcare workforce

BOSTON, June 26, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The largest strike of nurses and healthcare professionals in Massachusetts history is scheduled to begin on July 8 when approximately 4,500 nurses and clinicians represented by the Massachusetts Nurses Association (MNA) plan to strike at two Mass General Brigham (MGB) MNA bargaining units unless MGB executives negotiate fair contracts that invest in patient care and respect frontline caregivers.

The two strikes involve more than 4,000 registered nurses at Brigham and Women's Hospital and approximately 450 clinicians at MGB Home Care. The elected nurse and clinician leaders of both MNA bargaining units provided the legally required 10-day strike notices to MGB on Friday, June 26 following repeated attempts to get MGB to provide reasonable proposals over multiple bargaining sessions.

Strike Information

Brigham Nurse Picketing

Brigham nurses have scheduled a one-day strike to begin at 7 a.m. on Wednesday, July 8. Their strike would conclude at 6:59 a.m. on July 9. Following the strike, MGB has announced it will lock Brigham nurses out of the hospital for an additional four days. Nurses have made clear they are prepared to return to work immediately after the strike concludes, but MGB is choosing to keep them out of the hospital, jeopardizing patient care by prolonging what is supposed to be a more limited work stoppage.

Picketing locations:

• Main Hospital Campus, 75 Francis Street, Boston, 24/7
• Hale Building, 60 Fenwood Rd., Boston, until 6:30 p.m.
• 1620 Tremont St., Boston, until 6:30 p.m.
• 850 Boylston Street, Chestnut Hill, Boston, until 6:30 p.m.
• 20 Patriot Place, Foxborough, until 6:30 p.m.
• 3297 Washington St., Jamaica Plain, Boston, until 6:30 p.m.
• 801 Mass Ave, Boston, until 6:30 p.m.
• If nurses are locked out, they will picket during the lockout only at the main hospital.

"MGB executives are forcing 4,000 Brigham nurses to strike by choosing corporate profits over patient care," said Kelly Morgan, RN, a labor and delivery nurse and Chair of the BWH MNA Bargaining Committee. "MGB has spent years disrespecting nurses and ignoring our safety concerns. Executives have refused for months to invest in nurses, instead making proposals that would make it harder to recruit and retain nurses. We are standing up for our patients, our profession, and the future of care at the Brigham."

MGB Home Care Picketing

The MGB Home Care clinicians, who are negotiating their first MNA contract after voting to unionize in June 2024, will begin a seven-day strike on July 8 at 8 a.m. Their strike will conclude on July 15. The MGB Home Care bargaining unit includes registered nurses, occupational therapists, physical therapists, speech language pathologists, social workers, and dieticians.

Picketing locations:

• Mass General Home Care Beverly:
• 152 Conant St., Suite 300, Beverly MA, 01915
• Mass General Home Care Braintree:
• Braintree Hill Office Park, 45 Rockdale St, Suite 100, Braintree MA, 02184
• Mass General Home Care Chelsea:
• 70 Everett Ave. Suite 505, Chelsea MA, 02150
• Mass General Home Care Newton:
• 95 Wells Avenue, Suite 320, Newton MA, 02459
• Mass General Assembly Row:
• 399 Revolutionary Road, Somerville MA, 02145
• Days 2-7 of the strike picketing will be held at MGB Headquarters at Assembly Row in Somerville.

"MGB Home Care clinicians provide complex care that allows patients to remain safely in their homes and avoid unnecessary hospitalizations," said Shannon Viera, RN, Chair of the MGB Home Care MNA Bargaining Committee. "We have spent more than a year trying to negotiate a fair first contract. We do not want to strike, but we need enforceable standards and meaningful improvements so clinicians can continue providing the quality care our patients deserve."

Background on Brigham Nurse Negotiations

Brigham nurses voted by 99.6% on June 16 to authorize a one-day strike in the largest nurse strike vote in Massachusetts history. After more than seven months of bargaining, MGB has refused to address critical issues affecting patient care and the nursing workforce.

Brigham nurses are seeking:

• A contract that supports recruitment and retention of nurses to protect patient care.
• Competitive wage increases after months of MGB proposals that have included 0% cost of living increases.
  • Economic data showing that from 2020 to 2024, the income needed to maintain a middle-class standard of living for a two-parent family with two school-age children in Massachusetts jumped nearly 50 percent, according to the MassINC Policy Center.
  • Inflation in Massachusetts remains high, at nearly 4%, according to a report released last month.
• Affordable health insurance and insurance plan choice.
  • MGB has refused to provide insurance choice, despite holding nurses hostage to insurance tax penalties for a year.
  • MGB has also proposed insurance premium increases.
• Investment in the permanent nursing workforce, including limitations on the use of temporary travel nurses.
• Protection of patient care services threatened by recent MGB decisions, including the closure of the Weiner Center, the elimination of the Brigham Burn Unit, and cuts to other patient care programs.

MGB's bargaining positions undermine recruitment and retention at a time when healthcare systems across the region are struggling to maintain experienced bedside staff. Nurses also point to MGB's financial resources and executive compensation. MGB's top 14 executives received a combined $35.9 million in compensation in fiscal year 2024, including $8.4 million for CEO Dr. Anne Klibanski.

Background on MGB Home Care Clinician Negotiations

MGB Home Care clinicians voted by 92% on May 19 to authorize a potential seven-day strike. The clinicians have been bargaining since March 2025 for their first union contract after voting to join the MNA in 2024.

Clinicians are seeking:

• Reasonable caseload limits that support safe patient care.
• Clear and transparent productivity standards.
• Competitive wages reflecting the complexity and importance of home care services and aid with recruitment and retention.

MGB Home Care clinicians say their current working conditions contribute to burnout and high turnover, making it more difficult to recruit and retain caregivers while demand for home care services continues to grow. Like Brigham nurses, home care clinicians note that MGB has reported positive financial performance and billions of dollars in net gains while resisting proposals aimed at strengthening the frontline workforce.

MGB is the 7th wealthiest health care system in the country with $35.8 billion in assets, according to Beckers Hospital Review.

According to a report in STAT News in December, "Mass General Brigham on Friday reported a $59.2 million operating gain in the year ending in September, a 0.3% margin, compared to a $45.7 million gain in the same period the year prior. Those numbers, along with a sizable gain from investments, contributed to a $2.4 billion net margin. Last year, the system reported $2 billion in net gains."

MGB Executives Make Millions

While MGB refuses to settle fair contracts with Brigham nurses and MGB Home Care clinicians, MGB's executives are making many times the wages of these frontline caregivers. The top 14 MGB executives received a combined $35.9 million in compensation in fiscal year 2024.

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Founded in 1903, the Massachusetts Nurses Association is the largest union of registered nurses in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Its 25,000 members advance the nursing profession by fostering high standards of nursing practice, promoting the economic and general welfare of nurses in the workplace, projecting a positive and realistic view of nursing, and by lobbying the Legislature and regulatory agencies on health care issues affecting nurses and the public.

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SOURCE Massachusetts Nurses Association