MNA May Day Union Action: Baystate Home Health Clinicians Join Supporters for May 1 Picket Outside Baystate Health HQ in Springfield

MNA nurses at Baystate Home Health are bargaining for a fair contract that values and supports the essential care they provide to Springfield-area patients

, /PRNewswire/ -- The nurses and healthcare professionals of Baystate Home Health, represented by the Massachusetts Nurses Association, will picket outside Baystate Health headquarters at 4 p.m. on May 1 – an action coinciding with International Workers' Day/May Day.

MNA May Day Union Action Details
WHAT: MNA Baystate Home Health union nurses are fighting for a contract that includes dignity and respect. We need to keep care local through strong wages for recruitment and retention. Baystate must stop healthcare takeaways for the very nurses who care for our community!
WHERE: Baystate Medical Center, located at 759 Chestnut Street, Springfield Ma, 01199.
WHEN: This picket will be held on May 1st, 2025, from 4 to 5 p.m.

Baystate Home Health clinicians have taken previous actions in this contract fight, including bannering outside a Baystate facility in Northampton, publishing an op-ed in the Springfield Republican, and delivering a petition to Baystate President & CEO Peter Banko.

Also Join Us: May Day Parade and Celebration
WHO: Hosted by the Western MA Area Labor Federation, Springfield No One Leaves, and Neighbor to Neighbor.
WHAT: We will join in solidarity with songs, chanting, and hear from speakers highlighting the work that is being done and the importance of unanimity and solidarity in our times of struggle.
WHEN: May 1, 5 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
WHERE: Springfield United States Post Office, 1883 Main St., Springfield, MA

Baystate Home Health MNA Negotiation Background

Baystate Home Health clinicians work with an especially vulnerable population in the north end of Springfield, Forest Park and other areas that have concentrations of financially disadvantaged patients. The care they provide contributes to Baystate's stated community benefits mission to "reduce health disparities, promote community wellness, and improve access to care for priority populations."

Home health patients increasingly have complex medical needs that are being treated outside of the hospital setting. Baystate patients rely on Home Health clinicians' care following surgery, to manage a chronic illness, recover from a heart attack or stroke, and much more. Clinicians' efforts to provide this care have been undermined by Baystate's approach to contract negotiations.

Even though there is a high demand for nurses and other healthcare professionals in Massachusetts, and nurses at hospitals are in many cases receiving substantial pay increases, Baystate has put forward minimal pay proposals for Home Health clinicians. Non-competitive pay will harm Baystate's ability to improve patient safety through clinician recruitment and retention.

The results of this negotiation process are critical to how home health patients receive care, as evidenced by a 2024 survey from the state's Center for Health Information and Analysis. The survey found that almost half of all registered nurses working in home health care and adult day care left their jobs within a year.

A 2023 report by the leading home care and hospice associations said home health care providers were turning away over 25% of referred patients due to staff shortages. The home care report described a range of workforce challenges, including nurse salaries being lower when they work in home healthcare settings.

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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.

SOURCE Massachusetts Nurses Association