UW nursing strike is averted after Tony Evers brokered an agreement to pursue a legal analysis on the effort to form a union

Molly Beck
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Gov. Tony Evers on Monday announced a strike by UW Health nurses has been called off after he brought union representative and UW Health officials to the Executive Residence in Maple Bluff for additional mediation.

MADISON - Hundreds of Madison nurses seeking to be recognized as a union canceled a three-day work strike at the last minute after Gov. Tony Evers called the health care workers and their bosses to Maple Bluff over the weekend to hash out a settlement. 

Evers announced the agreement to avoid striking at a state Capitol news conference on Monday, where UW Health health care workers and UW Health CEO Alan Kaplan said the two sides agreed to pursue an analysis from the Wisconsin Employment Relations Commission on whether the health system must recognize their union.

"I just made an offer to come to the residence, sit down together and my message was quite clear that people in Wisconsin expect everybody to work together for the best of everyone. And no one wants a strike," Evers said. 

The agreement comes a day before the nurses were set to start a three-day strike they voted in late August to take if UW Health officials did not agree to negotiate with their union, SEIU Healthcare Wisconsin. 

Their pursuit of union recognition has been brewing since 2011 when Republican state lawmakers and then-Gov. Scott Walker passed a collective bargaining law known as Act 10 that eliminated most collective bargaining for public employees. Under Act 10, UW Health was removed from the state's Labor Peace Act, which required UW Health to recognize employee unions and negotiate pay and work conditions with staff. 

More:The day Scott Walker 'dropped the bomb': 10 years later, Act 10 maintains a firm grip on Wisconsin government

University of Wisconsin Hospitals and Clinics Authority, the formal name for the health care system, includes several clinics in the greater Madison area, as well as UW Health’s University Hospital, East Madison Hospital and the American Family Children's Hospital. It employs 3,400 nurses with the union estimated to include 2,600 .

Alan Kaplan, physician and CEO of UW Health

UW nurses argue they have not been public employees since the University of Wisconsin Hospitals and Clinics Authority, which includes UW Health, was created in 1995, making union recognition possible under the law. Democratic Attorney General Josh Kaul and Evers, who are backed by SEIU, have sided with nurses' arguments.  

Kaplan has argued state law prevents officials from bargaining with the union. 

Now, Kaplan and nurses pursuing union recognition have agreed to ask for a conclusion from the Wisconsin Employment Relations Commission, a state agency that oversees union relations and Act 10 compliance. 

UW Health nurse Colin Gillis is shown Thursday, September 8, 2022 at the Capitol in Madison, Wis. Gillis is helping to lead a unionzation effort by UW Health nurses.

"I take today as a testament to the strength and determination that nurses bring to everything we do," UW Health registered nurse Colin Gillis said at the Capitol news conference. "I have always said that our union and our executive leadership at UW Health ultimately share the same values and concerns. Starting today, we have the opportunity to meet at the table, roll up our sleeves and get to work."

More:UW nurses say the chaotic conditions at the height of COVID never eased. Now, they're set to strike in an effort to form a union.

Kaplan said Monday he expects WERC to issue its conclusion within "months."

"This not only averts the immediate work stoppage but also future work stoppages as we go through the process to obtain the final legal answer on whether UW Health can or cannot recognize a union and collectively bargain," he said. 

The matter could ultimately end up at the Wisconsin Supreme Court, which is controlled by conservatives 4-3. 

Jessica VanEgeren of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel contributed to this report. 

Contact Molly Beck at molly.beck@jrn.com. Follow her on Twitter at @MollyBeck.