MGB Home Care used to measure clinician productivity based on a weighted system that assigned more points to certain visits that were expected to take longer, but that changed a few years ago. Union members want to return to that system to protect both clinicians and patients, said Shannon Viera, a home care nurse and chair of the bargaining committee.
Viera added that the program has struggled to retain staff because of uncompetitive wages.
“Mass General Brigham keeps preaching that we are all one system, but when it comes to pay, they’re not paying us like our counterparts in the hospital,” Viera said. “There’s not much incentive to do this work. It’s hard work. It’s thankless work.”
In March, an MGB spokesperson said the health system proposed creating a new load management system as part of the negotiations.
MGB’s proposal would also create new wage scales for different roles. In January 2028, the clinicians would receive an additional 2.5 percent increase.
“We believe our offer recognizes the essential contributions of our Home Care clinicians as valued members of our care teams, offering highly competitive pay that maintains their position among the top of the local market,” MGB said in a statement.
While the striking clinicians plan to return to work at 8 a.m. on Wednesday, the union is slated to hold a culminating rally Tuesday afternoon at MGB’s headquarters in Somerville to mark the end of the walkout.
The Home Care union includes nurses, occupational therapists, physical therapists, speech language pathologists, social workers, and dietitians who care for patients at their homes.
It’s been a whirlwind week for Mass General Brigham, as both MGB Home Care and Brigham nurses walked off the job over unsuccessful contract bargaining. Nurses at the Brigham, one of MGB’s two flagship hospitals, returned to work Monday morning after a one-day strike and subsequent four-day lockout.
The unions and MGB have not made progress toward finding common ground on their contracts, even after the parties were summoned to the State House by Governor Maura Healey in an attempt to jumpstart discussions.
“I had felt confident that we wouldn’t have to end up on strike,” Viera said Monday. “To be here on day six of a seven-day strike doesn’t instill confidence in management coming to the table.”
During the Home Care strike, MGB hired more than 175 replacement clinicians to support home care services, although there were still some interruptions to patient care.
The health system temporarily paused new referrals to the program, but reopened the program to new high-need patients on July 10 and is now resuming normal operations, MGB spokesperson Jessica Pastore said.
Marin Wolf can be reached at marin.wolf@globe.com.