Allina Health doctors, PAs, nurse practitioners set for one-day strike on Wednesday

Hundreds of doctors, physicians’ assistants and nurse practitioners with Allina Health announced that they will hold a one-day unfair labor practices strike on Wednesday in the Twin Cities.

Members of Doctors Council – SEIU said they’ll picket at 60 Allina clinic and urgent care locations in Coon Rapids, West St. Paul and Richfield, as well as its south Minneapolis headquarters.

The group of over 600 health care workers voted to form a union in October 2023, and have been bargaining for a first contract since February 2024.   

The union says they’ve met with Allina nearly 50 times with the intention of reaching an agreement that “ensures their work is valued, they have safe working conditions and their voice is heard.” No deal was reached at the latest bargaining session on Tuesday, so the union confirmed its intention to strike.  

“We have seen so many of our colleagues leave primary care, we’ve seen so many of our colleagues get burned out, cut back their hours, not being able to see so many patients and we cannot let that cycle continue,” Dr. Matt Hoffman told WCCO last month. “We feel that we have to fight for a fair contract if we are going to see any improvement in primary care.”

Hoffman said the union’s primary goal is to improve patient care.

“Allina is refusing to bargain over safe staffing levels for our clinics. They are refusing to bargain over things that we consider basic contract items like health care, retirement and sick leave. And they are trying to cut wages for the majority of our members,” he said.

In response, Allina Health said it was “disappointed” that the group authorized a strike. 

“While we have made substantial progress on a number of issues, the union’s request for significant compensation increases and extreme benefits proposals are simply not realistic or sustainable,” Allina Health said in a statement. “Given the rising health care insurance costs, the ongoing financial challenges for health care providers and anticipated reductions in reimbursements and programs like Medicaid, we cannot agree to a contract that will add significant new costs and will undermine our ability to operate and serve the community.”

Hoffman said the union decided to strike for just one day to minimize the impact on their patients.  

“We certainly recognize that our patients are going to be affected by this strike. However, if we don’t strike, we are accepting more cuts to primary care,” he said. “And we certainly feel that in the long run, these cuts will undoubtedly affect patients much more than any strike.”

Over the summer, union members overwhelmingly voted to authorize a strike if they deemed it necessary. 

Both sides say they are committed to continued talks to reach an agreement.

Allina said it has plans to minimize disruptions and will contact patients directly if there are changes to appointments.