The members of United Steel Workers Local 4-200, the union that represents nurses at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, have agreed to a new contract, ending a monthslong strike.
“The members have voted to ratify a new, three-year collective bargaining agreement. We are pleased with the outcome of today’s vote and look forward to welcoming our nurses back home,” a spokesperson for the hospital wrote in a statement.
“The strike is over,” a spokesperson for the union told News 12.
A message posted on the United Steelworkers website states that the agreement, “addresses enforceable safe staffing standards, reasonable wage increases and many other enhancements that will improve benefits for nurses to levels greater than existed when we commenced our labor strike.”
“This contract would not have been possible if the nurses hadn’t stood together and demanded what our patients deserve,” said Local 4-200 President Judy Danella wrote in a statement. “This campaign has always been about safety and quality care, and we are ready to get back to work doing what we love.”
The nurses went on strike in August. They said their main issue was unsafe staffing practices.
After several months, a tentative agreement was reached on Dec. 1.