Nurses at Wilcox Medical Center and The Queen’s Medical Center are set to stage independent three-day strikes next week following stalled negotiations with their respective employers.

What You Need To Know

  • Some 99% of Wilcox’s 160 nurses participated in a strike-authorization vote that closed on Jan. 2, with 76% supporting a strike. The nurses are scheduled to strike from Jan. 14 to 16
  • Union nurses at The Queen’s Medical Center also voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike. Of the 98% of nurses who participated, 90% voted affirmatively. Queen’s nurses will strike Jan. 13 to 15
  • Wilcox said it has arranged to have temporary nurses fill in for the striking workers to ensure that patient services and hospital operations are not impacted
  • Linda Puu, senior vice president of quality and patient safety and chief nursing executive for The Queen’s Health Systems, noted that the hospital’s “last, best and final offer” includes a staffing matrix based on acuity, census and patient mix as well as wage increases of 5%, 4% and 4% over three years, topping out at $75.46 to $83.46 per hour

 

The nurses are represented by the Hawaii Nurses Association, OPEIU Local 50. Notifications to both Wilcox and Queen’s were transmitted following strike-authorization votes over the last two weeks. Some 99% of Wilcox’s 160 nurses participated in a strike-authorization vote that closed on Jan. 2, with 76% supporting a strike. The nurses are scheduled to strike from Jan. 14 to 16.

Union nurses at The Queen’s Medical Center also voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike. Of the 98% of nurses who participated, 90% voted affirmatively. Queen’s nurses will strike Jan. 13 to 15.

“After months of negotiations and efforts to secure a fair contract and better working conditions, we are standing together to take a vital step toward ensuring our voices are heard,” the union said in a statement regarding the Wilcox strike.

“This action is not taken lightly,” the union stated. “It is a testament to our unwavering commitment to safe staffing ratios, competitive wages and the resources we need to provide the highest standard of care for our patients.”

“We are extremely disappointed by HNA’s decision to strike as we are so close to reaching an agreement,” said Wilcox president and CEO Jen Chahanovich in a statement. “Our responsibility is to take care of our community and the people of Kauai who depend on us. Wilcox will remain open and serve our patients as we always have.”

Wilcox said it has arranged to have temporary nurses fill in for the striking workers to ensure that patient services and hospital operations are not impacted.

The two sides have met 22 times over the last eight months, including recent sessions with a federal mediator.

“For months, we have expressed to HNA that we are willing to negotiate in person as often as possible, for as long as it takes,” Chahanovich said. “As we are close to reaching an agreement, we’ve told HNA that we are willing to meet even before our next scheduled negotiations on Jan. 9 and 10.”

Chahanovich said the medical center has based many of its proposals on the contract HNA recently entered with Kapiolani Medical Center for Women and Children, “with some adjustments for the unique needs of Kauai.”

Wilcox’s most recent offer includes across-the-board wage increases that would bring base salaries for nurses to $138,000 to $161,000 based on a three-day work week by the end of the contract, as well as a flexible staffing matrix based on national standards that mirrors the system adopted in the Kapiolani contract.

“We care for our nurses, and our offer reflects what they have asked for as well as what we believe is necessary to care for our neighbor island community,” Chahanovich said. “We are committed to reaching an agreement so that our nurses can benefit from a new contract as soon as possible, and we can focus on what matters most to us all — caring for our community, together.”

The rhetoric has been sharper in the QMC standoff, with HNA accusing QMC of regressive bargaining and unfair labor practices. The two sides have met more than 40 times since April 2024.

QMC nurses have specifically objected to the lack of improvements to on-call language, parking and retirement medical benefits in the medical center’s proposals. They’ve also taken issue with paid time off scheduling, which they say deprives lower-seniority nurses of their full annual accrued benefit.

Among other things, the union is seeking a weekend pay differential, 20- and 30-year longevity steps to reward loyalty and other incentives based on years of experience to attract and retain skilled nurses.

Linda Puu, senior vice president of quality and patient safety and chief nursing executive for The Queen’s Health Systems, noted that the hospital’s “last, best and final offer” includes a staffing matrix based on acuity, census and patient mix as well as wage increases of 5%, 4% and 4% over three years, topping out at $75.46 to $83.46 per hour.

HNA has said the proposed increases do not keep up with inflation and do not meet the nurses’ needs.

“Our goal remains to continue to negotiate an agreement that both The Queen’s Medical Center and our nurses will be proud of,” Puu said in a statement released shortly after the strike-authorization vote. “We do not want our nurses taking a path that will negatively impadt them, their families and this prestigious institution, our patients and the mission of our founders King Kamehameha IV and Queen Emma.”

Michael Tsai covers local and state politics for Spectrum News Hawaii. He can be reached at michael.tsai@charter.com.