March 1 marked six months since nurses began striking at Henry Ford Genesys Hospital in Grand Blanc, Mich.
Here are four things to know about ongoing negotiations:
1. Nurses represented by Teamsters Local 332 went on strike Sept. 1. Detroit-based Henry Ford Health shared a contract offer with the union in late February that includes total wage increases of up to 13%, according to a March 2 health system news release shared with Becker’s.
2. The union said hospital management has not accepted its return-to-work agreement, which would protect nurses’ seniority and allow the 750 nurses to return to their jobs, according to a March 2 union news release shared with Becker’s. It has resulted in nurses being blocked from reclaiming their legally protected positions and voting on a new contract, the union said.
“These are professionals who gave years — even decades — to this hospital,” Local 332 President Dan Glass said in the union release. “These attacks are blatantly illegal, and it’s long overdue for the National Labor Relations Board to do its job and protect these nurses’ statutory right to return to their positions.”
3. Henry Ford Health’s offer ensures safe staffing and guarantees every union member on strike will have an opportunity to return to work, the system said. While many striking nurses are being given the opportunity to return to their previous roles, exact shifts and assignments may no longer exist as a result of operational changes over the past six months, according to the release.
“Genesys Hospital is guaranteeing positions for every nurse that wants to return now or when the strike ends, without any loss of seniority,” Henry Ford Health said. “The hospital is committed to honoring seniority for nurses whose prior positions are not currently available and offering alternative options, such preferential treatment when jobs on their former unit become available.”
4. The two parties have met more than 80 times since negotiations began in April, the health system said. Genesys Hospital joined Detroit-based Henry Ford Health in October 2024 through a joint venture with Ascension Michigan.
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