Mount Nittany Workers ‘Deeply Disappointed’ by New Offer in First Negotiations After Strike

Mount Nittany Medical Center officials and its unionized workers returned to the negotiating table on Monday, but remained no closer to an agreement on a new contract than they were before a five-day strike that concluded on Saturday morning.

The latest proposal from hospital executives included 2% across-the-board wage increases for each of the next three years, down from the 3% in the first year and 2% each of the following two years previously offered and rejected by the union, according to SEIU Healthcare Pennsylvania, which represents 950 workers across all departments at the medical center and satellite locations.

It also eliminated previously proposed pay grade increases for nearly 20 positions and lowered additional wage increases for nurses.

Tom Brezler, an X-ray special procedures technician at Mount Nittany, said in a statement that workers felt like executives “want to retaliate against us” for going on strike.

“I’m deeply disappointed by the hospital’s approach to go lower,” Brezler said. “Just weeks ago, Mount Nittany claimed that they were doing their best to recruit and retain staff. Now they’re decreasing raises and reducing pay proposals in areas where we all agreed that we need to do better in staffing. Rather than finding an agreement that invests in the care our community needs, Mount Nittany is showing that they are not listening to the concerns or priorities of patients, community members and hospital staff.”

A Mount Nittany spokesperson said that since the previous offer, the health system finalized its financial results for the 2025-26 fiscal year that ended June 30 and recorded its first operating loss in more than a decade. Mount Nittany officials also continued to evaluate the impact of losing the Sole Community Hospital designation, which a lawsuit against the federal government said will cost the medical center millions in higher Medicare reimbursements, other “ongoing reimbursement pressures and increased expenses, including the cost of the five-day strike.”

“Together, these developments changed our financial outlook and required us to reassess what we can responsibly sustain in a labor agreement while continuing to invest in the care and services our community depends on,” the spokesperson wrote in an email to StateCollege.com. “As a result, the commitments we can responsibly sustain today are different from when our earlier proposal was developed. It reflects our responsibility to make commitments we can honor while protecting patient care, preserving local services and ensuring Mount Nittany Health remains a strong locally-governed, independent community health system.”

The union responded to the new offer with a proposal requiring Mount Nittany Health CEO Kathleen Rhine —who members have frequently criticized for not appearing at any bargaining sessions — to be present at contract negotiations and for the hospital “to cover health benefits and outstanding costs accrued after they terminated the workers’ insurance during the five-day strike,” according to SEIU Healthcare PA.

“It’s become evident that it’s extremely difficult to move toward a successful agreement and move quality care standards forward without the real decision-makers at Mount Nittany being present at the bargaining table, the hospital and frankly in our community,” Brezler said. “We remain extremely committed to negotiating an agreement that sets this hospital up for success. We won’t back down when we know the whole community is counting on us.”

Negotiations began on April 29 and the union’s previous three-year contract expired on June 30. On July 2, workers authorized a strike notice and six days later voted overwhelmingly in favor of beginning a five-day strike on July 27 if a deal couldn’t be reached.

In the last bargaining session before the strike, Mount Nittany offered a proposal, which a hospital spokesperson said was aimed at avoiding a work stoppage, that included a one-year contract extension with 3% across-the-board wage increases, as well as a $1,000 ratification bonus for every employee in the bargaining unit, wage scale upgrades for 18 job classifications and new investments in workplace safety.

Workers are seeking wage increases that they say will help with recruitment and retention by keeping pace with inflation and the rising cost of living, as well as new workplace safety measures in response to escalating concerns about violence in healthcare settings.

Mount Nittany, the union argues, is financially positioned to meet the demands and has been able to invest hundreds of millions of dollars in facilities and acquisitions, such as the new patient tower at the medical center, the outpatient center at Toftrees West and planned medical office building in Bellefonte.

“How can Mount Nittany be so quick to invest in new buildings and expansion, but not want to invest in retaining and recruiting staff for quality patient care?” Brezler said.

No further bargaining sessions have been scheduled. Both the hospital and the union say they are committed to good-faith negotiations.

“We value our employees and the care they provide, and we remain prepared to continue meeting with SEIU to work toward an agreement,” the Mount Nittany spokesperson said.