MARQUETTE — After two days of voting, registered nurses with the Michigan Nurses Association at UPHS-Marquette overwhelmingly voted to ratify a new contract.

The new contract includes guaranteed wage increases of 18.75% over four years to bolster recruitment and retention at the Upper Peninsula’s largest hospital; a new joint committee of hospital representatives and union nurses that will review the hospital’s staffing plans and address staffing issues; inclusion of staffing in the union’s grievance process, and continuation of the nurses’ current health insurance.

The following statement is from Christina Hanson, RN, president of the RN Staff Nurse Council at the hospital: “We are excited about the stronger nurse staffing language we negotiated so we can improve the care and safety of our community. Nurses joining together to fight for each other and our community is how we got here, and that won’t change just because our contract is done. We want to thank our community for all their support, from the bottom of our hearts. Every time people come through the hospital’s doors, please know that nurses are your best advocates and we will always stand up for what’s right.”

In a previous statement that referenced the tentative agreement, Tonya Darner, market chief executive officer of UPHS-Marquette and UPHS-Bell, said, “Our nurses play an incredibly vital role in the delivery of healthcare at our hospital, so we could not be more pleased to have reached a(n) … agreement that meets the collective needs of our staff, the hospital and the community. We are grateful to everyone involved for their dedication to reaching a positive outcome. We remain committed to creating an excellent workplace for our employees and delivering the highest quality care to our patients.”

Members of the Marquette Ancillary Staff and Technologists, another MNA union at the hospital, will vote on the ratification of their tentative agreement with UPHS-Marquette on Thursday.