Unionized doctors reach tentative deal with Allina Health after four-day strike
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The union representing about 150 doctors at Allina Health’s Mercy Hospital in Coon Rapids and its Unity campus in Fridley announced Wednesday that it has reached a tentative agreement for a first contract with the health system.
Doctors Council SEIU, the union that represents the physicians, said the three-year contract includes pay transparency, greater professional autonomy and a grievance process for advocating on behalf of patients. However, the union has dropped its demand for paid sick leave, saying doctors were not receiving the time off required under state law.
The agreement follows a four-day strike last week, which is believed to be the first by inpatient doctors at a private-sector hospital in U.S. history.
“This hard-won first contract gives us the written protections we needed so we can keep providing the care our patients deserve, instead of watching burnout drive good doctors out,” said Dr. Saul Singh in a statement.
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A spokesperson for Allina Health, one of Minnesota’s largest health systems, confirmed the tentative agreement in a statement and said the agreement will now go to a ratification vote by union members in the coming days.
If the doctors, including obstetricians, psychiatrists and critical care physicians, vote to ratify the contract, it will conclude three years of 66 contentious bargaining negotiations with Allina.
In 2023, Allina physicians voted to unionize after facing challenging conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic. The union said long hours and difficult working environments motivated the doctors to organize. Allina contested the vote, delaying federal certification of the union for nearly a year.
Dr. John Wust, an OB-GYN at Mercy Hospital in Coon Rapids, said while striking outside of the hospital last week that, during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, physician input was excluded from business decisions affecting patients.
He said unionized physicians at Allina are concerned about the growing influence of artificial intelligence in electronic medical records and the push to use AI in diagnosing patients.
“Our union collectively protects the rights of physicians in their advocacy for patients and patient safety in the context of very powerful economic forces, including the emergence of AI in healthcare,” Wust said on the tentative agreement with Allina.
The agreement comes while Allina pursues a proposed merger with California-based Sutter Health, which is currently under review by the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office.
The two healthcare systems said the agreement, if finalized, would result in an investment of more than $2 billion in facilities across Minnesota and western Wisconsin, including new locations and improved technology.
Unions representing doctors, nurses, and other healthcare workers at Allina have expressed concerns about the merger and its potential impact on union members' contracts, benefits and patient care.
