Picketing starts at 7 a.m. — rally at 9 a.m.

RNs at Ascension Saint Agnes Hospital to strike on July 24 for the first time

Registered nurses at Ascension Saint Agnes Hospital in Baltimore, Md., will hold a one-day strike from July 24, 7 a.m. to July 25, 6:59 a.m., to protest Ascension management’s refusal to address their urgent concerns about patient care, safe staffing, and high staff turnover in contract negotiations. This notice follows a nearly unanimous strike authorization vote on May 16.

This is the first time hospital nurses in Baltimore have gone on strike. The nurses, who are represented by National Nurses Organizing Committee//National Nurses United (NNOC/NNU), made history in November 2023 as the first RNs to unionize a hospital in Baltimore. Nurses gave advance notice to the hospital for the strike.

“We are striking because patients cannot get the best care due to hospital management’s staffing decisions that have led to a staffing crisis,” said Melissa LaRue, a registered nurse in the intensive care unit. “During contract negotiations, we have put forward many proposals to address our concerns about patient safety and safe staffing. We want Ascension to come to the bargaining table so we can reach an agreement that puts patients first.”

Who:    Registered nurses at Ascension Saint Agnes Hospital

What:   One-day strike for patient safety and a fair contract

When:  Thursday, July 24, 7 a.m. to Friday, July 25, 6:59 a.m.
RNs picketing: 7 a.m.–1 p.m. and 4 p.m.–8 p.m. outside the hospital; rally at 9 a.m.

Where: Ascension Saint Agnes Hospital, 900 S. Caton Ave, Baltimore, Md.

Ascension Saint Agnes nurses have been in negotiations for a first contract since January 2024 with little to no movement on key issues. Ascension management has refused to address nurses’ concerns about short staffing, unsafe floating assignments, and RN retention. Floating is a management practice where nurses are reassigned to units of the hospital where they do not normally work. Between April and July of this year, more than 10 percent of Ascension Saint Agnes’ nurses left due to these chronic issues.

“We are seeing experienced nurses leave our hospital and the nursing profession altogether due to the working conditions at Saint Agnes,” said Robin Buckner, a registered nurse on the vascular access team. “We need to stop the exodus of nurses by improving nurse staffing. When we have too many patients to care for, patient outcomes suffer. It means patients are waiting for pain medications, waiting for a nurse to answer their call light, or for assistance to get out of bed. This is why we are fighting for safe nurse-to-patient ratios in our contracts.”

The RNs urge management to invest in nursing staff and agree to a contract with:

• Safe nurse-to-patient staffing ratios;
• Floating procedures that prevent nurses from being assigned to units where they have not established expertise or competency; and
• No patient assignments for charge nurses so that they can be a resource for other nurses.

Nurses have held multiple rallies over the last 18 months of negotiations to raise attention to their concerns. Instead of investing in nursing staff, Ascension has entered a definitive agreement to acquire ambulatory surgery provider Amsurg for almost $4 billion, adding more than 250 ambulatory surgery centers across 34 states, including Maryland, to Ascension’s outpatient portfolio.

NNOC represents more than 600 nurses at Ascension Saint Agnes Hospital.

National Nurses United is the largest and fastest-growing union and professional association of registered nurses in the United States with more than 225,000 members nationwide. NNU affiliates include California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee, DC Nurses Association, Michigan Nurses Association, Minnesota Nurses Association, and New York State Nurses Association.