Copyright Newsweek
Nurses at Aspirus Ironwood Hospital in Ironwood, Michigan, voted this week to strike amid contract negotiations. The Michigan Nurses Association (MNA) said the strike is a protest against their employer’s unfair labor practices. Why It Matters Sarah Trudgeon, a nurse and president of the local Michigan Nurses Association, said the union remains willing to bargain in good faith to agree on a new contract with the hospital. “Our goal has always been simply to reach an agreement that supports Ironwood nurses so we can recruit and retain the skilled nurses our community needs,” she said in a statement. “Our concern is not only about this contract, but really also about the future of healthcare in our region.” What To Know Aspirus Health is a nonprofit health system based in Wisconsin that serves northeastern Minnesota, northern and central Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. It includes 18 hospitals, 130 outpatient centers and nearly 14,000 employees. Aspirus Ironwood Hospital told Newsweek that it is disappointed by the strike authorization and frustrated with the inflexibility of MNA leaders during negotiations. The hospital said the “costly” strike won’t help reach an agreement. “The gridlock in negotiations has occurred due to the MNA’s unwillingness to move to a more fair and flexible ‘market-based’ wage structure that rewards all nurses, rather than a select few who have a longer tenure,” the hospital said in a statement. “The outdated ‘step schedule’ the MNA insists on handcuffs Aspirus, preventing a responsive approach to provide a competitive wage to attract new talent, retain current nurses and operate with flexibility in a volatile rural health care environment.” The hospital said its market-based wage proposal would have provided pay increases that “dramatically outperform” the MNA’s proposal. “Surprisingly, MNA negotiators want to maintain their rigid structure, even though Aspirus has proposed an overall immediate wage increase greater than the wage increase sought by the union,” the hospital said. Additionally, the hospital said MNA insists on including a clause that would require all Ironwood nurses to become members of the union and pay periodic dues. Aspirus does not support this measure and believes employees have the right to make their own decision on union membership. The nurses and Aspirus Hospital have been in negotiations since May 6, 2025. The most recent contract expired in early August. The parties failed to reach an agreement at the last bargaining session on October 29, prompting the union to hold a vote to determine whether or not to strike. The decision to strike was unanimous. MNA said nurses rejected a proposed contract from Aspirus on October 15 because it would eliminate the wage structure that rewards nurses’ experience, provide lower wages than what MNA proposed for about half of nurses and fails to meaningfully address the impending closure of the hospital’s labor and delivery unit. Aspirus Ironwood plans to close its labor and delivery unit, putting nurses out of work and cutting care access for women in the region. Ashley Thompson, an OB nurse at the hospital, said this would mean women will have to drive up to 45 minutes to another hospital, adding that emergency department nurses at Ironwood lack the specialized training to deal with problematic childbirths that put both the mother's and baby’s lives at risk. “It’s just body blow after body blow by Aspirus, with no regard to the fact that they’re leaving our community without the care they need,” Thompson said in a statement. Back in September, the Aspirus nurses and their union filed unfair labor charges against the hospital with the National Labor Relations Board because of “executives’ refusal to return to the bargaining table.” The union said Aspirus has a legal obligation to bargain in good faith with nurses for a new contract. What Happens Next The union said there are no bargaining dates set at this time, but the nurses remain ready to continue discussions over a new contract. Aspirus Ironwood said it has a contingency plan in place if a strike occurs to ensure patient care and timely response to emergencies. What People Are Saying Aspirus Ironwood Hospital said in a statement to Newsweek: “During a time of rising costs, falling reimbursement and intense workforce challenges, however, that is not where we would prefer to direct our resources. We are determined to continue bargaining in good faith to deliver on our threefold commitment to our patients, to all our people and to the communities we are honored to serve.” Newsweek reached out to the Michigan Nurses Association for comment.
