Allegheny General Hospital nurses vote to allow a strike if needed
About 1,500 nurses at Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh voted 99% on Thursday to allow a strike if talks fail. They plan a picket on Oct. 29, KDKA and WPXI reported. The hospital network said it expects to reach a fair deal and that the vote does not mean a strike will happen.
Nurses at Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh voted 99% on Thursday to authorize a strike if needed and to hold an informational picket on Oct. 29, CBS station KDKA and WPXI reported. The SEIU Healthcare Pennsylvania union represents about 1,500 nurses at the hospital.
The nurses' contract with Allegheny Health Network was set to expire Oct. 13 but has been extended through Oct. 30 to allow more time for talks, the stations said. If the nurses decide to strike, they would give the hospital 10 days' notice, according to KDKA.
The union says the nurses want staffing based on the hospital's actual number of beds rather than projected patient numbers, along with pay that keeps experienced nurses, KDKA reported. The union said the health network has proposed raising nurses' health care costs and cutting retirement and time-off benefits.
The hospital's budgeted daily patient count has risen from 395 in 2024 to 417 this year, according to union figures cited by KDKA. The union said the health network reported $160 million in profits in the first half of 2026 and its parent, Highmark Health, reported $2 billion.
"We're a Level 1 Trauma Center, and I'm very concerned that if, God forbid, we had a mass casualty event, how would we be able to care for everyone?" neurosurgery nurse Emily Guckert said, KDKA reported. WPXI quoted her saying many experienced operating room nurses have left while more complex surgeries are being added.
In a statement published by WPXI, Allegheny Health Network said it is bargaining in good faith and is "confident that an agreement can and will be reached that is fair and competitive for our employees." More talks are scheduled, and the authorization vote "is a normal part of negotiations, and it does not mean that a strike will occur," the network said.
KDKA said it had asked Highmark Health for comment and had not heard back Thursday night.
What we know: Nurses approved a possible strike by 99%, plan a picket on Oct. 29, and their contract runs through Oct. 30.
What we don't: Whether the two sides will reach a deal before the contract extension ends.
Where outlets agree KDKA and WPXI both report that about 1,500 nurses voted 99% to authorize a strike and plan an Oct. 29 picket.
Where they differ The outlets cited here report the same key facts so far.