Tentative agreement ensures Essentia Health nursing jobs will remain among best in Sandstone, surrounding communities

Essentia Health and the Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA) have reached a tentative agreement on a new three-year contract covering 28 nurses at Essentia Health-Sandstone.

The agreement recognizes the exceptional contributions of our nurses in providing expert patient care while ensuring these jobs remain among the best in Sandstone and the surrounding communities.

The proposed contract features cross-facility floating, a care model that gives nurses the choice to pick up a shift at a different Essentia facility to better meet patient needs. The provision also allows nurses at other Essentia facilities to fill shifts in Sandstone to provide support. Cross-facility floating is completely voluntary. In 2024 alone, Essentia ratified more than 20 contracts with individual union groups. Nine of those contracts featured similar cross-facility floating language.

The tentative agreement has the full recommendation of the MNA bargaining committee. A vote is expected to take place on March 7.

The agreement also includes wage increases each year of the contract, with a market adjustment in the first year that brings wages into alignment with neighboring Moose Lake nurses. Salaries would increase 3.5% in both the second and third years of the contract. By the final year of the deal, nurses in Sandstone who work 40 hours a week will have an annual salary between $85,400 and $127,100, depending on years of service.

Essentia and the MNA have worked diligently for months to arrive at an agreement that supports nurses and preserves access to high-quality rural care close to home for our patients in and around Sandstone.

Essentia maintains contracts with 54 organized bargaining units, which cover approximately 6,500 employees.