In preparation for an announced 1-day strike by nurses affiliated with the Minnesota Nurses Association, several hospitals reduced or shifted patient loads to ensure adequate care for all patients. When many of the nurses were not needed the next day due to the decreased patient level, they accused the hospital of an illegal lockout. When the 1-day walkout failed to achieve the union’s bargaining objectives, the MNA began discussing another walk-out, this time potentially open-ended. Area hospitals question the union’s motivation for the threat. As our own Phillip Wilson said in an article in MedCity News, “a strike for patient care is like a beer bash for alcoholics.”
