Editor’s note: This article was updated at 10:53 a.m. on April 3, 2025, to include comments from PeaceHealth.
BELLINGHAM, WA (MyBellinghamNow.com) – Unionized nurses in Bellingham have shot down a proposed contract with PeaceHealth.
The Washington State Nurses Association says union members voted last week to reject PeaceHealth’s contract that would run through 2028.
The association says over 84% of members voted, making it the union’s highest ratification vote turnout on record. It came after the union’s bargaining team recommended that members approve the contract.
The agreement would have given all members an instant 4.25% raise and an additional $1 hourly raise for nurses with less than nine years of experience. Members would also receive an additional 4% raise in each of the next two years.
The union says it has reached out to PeaceHealth management to resume negotiations, though it will likely have to wait until mid-April. In the meantime, its bargaining team warns that nurses will lose wages until a new contract is approved.
Amy Drury, senior director of marketing and communications with PeaceHealth Northwest, said in a statement to MBN:
“We understand how important our union contracts are to our caregivers. We are bargaining in good faith to reach agreements that support caregivers and allow us to carry out our sacred Mission for Whatcom County. It is disappointing that our nurses will not have immediate access to the improvements and investments the tentative agreement, which was signed and endorsed by WSNA, would have provided, including wage and premium pay increases.
As we continue our bargaining, our focus remains on our deeply held commitment to provide quality and compassionate care to our patients, caregivers and their families.”
