A tentative agreement has been reached in the contract dispute between the Hawaiʻi Nurses' Association and Kapiʻolani Medical Center for Women and Children.
The deal between the hospital and nearly 600 HNA nurses was announced late Tuesday afternoon. The union said the nurses were voting on the agreement Wednesday. If they ratify the contract, they will return to work on Sunday.
The Kapiʻolani nurses have been locked out of the facility and not allowed to return to work since Sept. 14.
The two sides have been talking with a federal mediator for several days. Contract negotiations began in September 2023 — over a year ago.
HNA President Rosalee Agas-Yuu said the union nurses are pleased with the agreement. She said the staffing ratio, or “matrix,” in the contract is a win for the union.
The matrix would lower the number of patients assigned to nurses at any time — perhaps the biggest issue for the Kapiʻolani nurses.
“The matrix is fantastic. There was a lot of back and forth, and the employer agreed to a lot of stuff that went through. The nurses are pretty happy with it, and to have something formal, finally, is a good feeling because that's the main reason why they took this stance,” Agas-Yuu said.
HNA said the staffing ratios resulted in declines in the quality of care. Management at Kapiʻolani, a Hawaiʻi Pacific Health facility, said the union wanted a fixed ratio of patients to nurses, but Kapiʻolani wanted more flexibility in assigning patients.
Kapiʻolani Medical Center Chief Operating Officer Gidget Ruscetta also said she was “pleased” with the tentative contract agreement.
“This agreement reflects a year of negotiating, listening to our nurses and incorporating their priorities into this contract. As we await the voting results, we look forward to the day our nurses return to the bedside to care for our patients,” Ruscetta said in a statement.
Nurses have been working without a contract since last November. In a statement, Gov. Josh Green said the contract agreement is “very encouraging.”
He added, “We will continue to find ways to repay nursing education debt, and support hospitals by funding improvements to their facilities so that everyone in Hawaiʻi has the best healthcare in our country.”
Contract negotiations had stalled over working conditions, overtime, wages and other issues, and had become increasingly tense in recent weeks.
HNA held a one-day strike after accusing Kapiʻolani management of retaliating against nurses who documented “unsafe” staffing conditions. In response, Kapiʻolani banned the nurses from working until they agreed to a contract offer.
Community members later blocked one of the hospital’s entrances, delaying buses of travel nurses who were working at the facility while union nurses were locked out.
HNA said nurses could vote on the contract throughout Wednesday until the evening.
