Nurses at Houlton Regional Hospital begin strike on Nov. 18

Registered nurses at Houlton Regional Hospital (HRH) in Houlton, Maine, will begin their two-day strike on Tuesday, Nov. 18, to protest management’s refusal to address their deep concerns about staffing and patient care, announced Maine State Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee (MSNA/NNOC) today.

The nurses gave the hospital notice of their strike on Nov. 7. In September, they voted overwhelming to authorize the bargaining team to call a strike. HRH nurses have been negotiating for over a year for a new contract. The previous contract expired on Nov. 30, 2024.

Short staffing in the emergency department (ED) has been an ongoing issue, particularly during the night shift. Nurses say patients are often housed in hallway beds due to the lack of available inpatient beds and the severity of their conditions. Nurses say the closure of the hospital’s maternal services is putting patient safety at risk. Since July, the hospital no longer provides labor and delivery or postpartum services, so ED nurses have to stabilize pregnant patients for transport elsewhere and to deliver babies in the emergency room.

“This is a close community; our patients are our neighbors,” said Tenille Nason, RN in the emergency department. “We have seen over the last five years the emergency department consistently filled with sicker patients. To provide optimal, timely care, sicker patients require additional staffing, but staffing has not changed. We need to do better for our community.”

Who:    Registered nurses at Houlton Regional Hospital

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

When:  Tuesday, Nov. 18, 6:45 a.m. to Thursday, Nov. 20, 6:44 a.m.

Where: HRH, 20 Hartford St., Houlton

“For the past several years, hospital management has consistently relied on travel nurses to help staff the hospital,” said Michael MacArthur, RN in the emergency department. “We need to retain our experienced nurses who live in the area. We get plenty of nurses to come, but they leave. We need a strong contract that protects us and our patients and attracts and retains excellent nurses.”

MSNA/NNOC represents 55 nurses at Houlton Regional Hospital.

Maine State Nurses Association is part of the National Nurses Organizing Committee, representing 4,000 nurses and other caregivers from Portland to Fort Kent. NNOC is an affiliate of the National Nurses United, the largest and fastest-growing labor union of registered nurses in the United States with nearly 225,000 members nationwide.