UVM Medical Center lauds new contract with nurses, asks for rate increase to cover costs

Nurses at UVM Medical Center voted last weekend to ratify a new contract with the hospital after securing the largest wage increase in the 21-year history of their union and avoiding a threatened five-day strike.

The new contract includes a 23% increase in wages over the next three years. Over the four-year period between October 2022 and October 2026, UVMMC nurses will have received raises totaling 43%, according to the hospital. This year's contentious contract negotiations resulted in the nurses voting to authorize a five-day strike before a last-minute deal was struck. Bargaining went on for 12 sessions over three months.

"I'm incredibly proud of our bargaining team," Dr. Stephen Leffler, president and chief operating officer at UVMMC, said in a statement on Tuesday. "Through their work, we successfully averted a strike and achieved a fair contract we can be proud of − one that supports our nurses while keeping in mind the high cost of living that all of our patients and community members are also facing."

New contract will require bigger increase in commercial insurance rates

The salary increases and other benefits in the new contract will further improve UVMMC's recruitment and retention efforts for nurses, according to Chief Nursing Officer Peg Gagne. The U.S. is in the midst of a nursing shortage, with the National Center for Health Workforce analysis projecting a nationwide shortage of nearly 80,000 registered nurses next year.

UVM Medical Center built increased costs for nurses into the budget it submitted earlier this month to the Green Mountain Care Board for the coming fiscal year, but the new nursing contract exceeds those projections. As a result, UVMMC has adjusted its requested commercial rate increase by 1.4% to directly support the agreement. The Green Mountain Care Board regulates major areas of health care in Vermont, including hospital budgets.

The hospital's total requested commercial rate increase for fiscal 2025 is now 7.91%, rather than the 6.51% increase submitted to the Care Board on July 1.

How the increases and other benefits break down

Nurses wages will increase as follows:

• After ratification: 5% wage increase
• October 2024: 6% wage increase
• October 2025: 5% wage increase
• October 2026: 7% wage increase

In addition to wage increase, the contract also includes:

• Added pay for nurses when they are assigned as charge nurse on their floor, overseeing the operations of the unit while working alongside the team
• New health and safety provisions
• Expanded career advancement funds
• Changes in how the organization recognizes past experience of newly hired employees
• Increased wages for nurses with the longest tenure

Contact Dan D’Ambrosio at 660-1841 or ddambrosio@freepressmedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @DanDambrosioVT.