Hudson, N.Y.-based Columbia Memorial Health and 1199SEIU, which represents more than 800 of the health system's 1,400 workers, have reached a contract agreement, according to a Times Union report.
Here are four things to know about the agreement.
1. The contract, which is in effect through 2019, was reached after seven months of bargaining.
2. It affects 207 registered nurses and 612 direct caregivers, professional and technical workers, and service and maintenance employees.
3. It includes pay increases. The contract raises pay by 6.5 percent by the end of the contract and limits workers' share of healthcare costs to a 6 percent increase over the same period, according to the report. The contract also includes a "successor clause" that ensures union membership and job protection in cases of mergers, acquisitions, affiliations and other changes, according to the union.
4. The contract comes as Columbia Memorial Health, parent of Columbia Memorial Hospital, became officially affiliated with Albany (N.Y.) Medical Center in January. According to the report, the union had previously expressed concern about the new partnership as far as job security and maintaining collective bargaining throughout the health system.
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