POUGHKEEPSIE – The New York State Nurses Association and Nuvance Health have renewed the contract for the more than 800 nurses at Vassar Brothers Medical Center.
The renewed contract, which ends on January 31, 2022, includes staffing guidelines, pay raises, retroactive base pay and a tuition reimbursement program.
“I’m thrilled we were able to come to a settlement on behalf of our hard-working nurses and their families, not just for all of us at Vassar Brothers Medical Center but the entire Poughkeepsie community,” Vassar Brothers Medical Center President Joseph Mullany said.
“The key component of this contract is staffing guidelines and their enforcement. With safe staffing, we can provide the care our patients need and deserve. Safe staffing also keeps quality nurses on the job. It is the most critical element of nurse satisfaction,” said Jen Beyer, a registered nurse who is president of the local bargaining unit.
In April 2019, Western Connecticut Health Network and Health Quest merged to create Nuvance Health uniting seven hospitals across western Connecticut and the Hudson Valley of New York.
Nuvance Health and the nurses’ union had been in talks since the contracts of nurses at Vassar Brothers Medical Center expired on May 1, 2019.
