Joliet nurses ready to set strike date

Nurses at Ascension Saint Joseph – Joliet hospital plan to set a strike date later this week, a union representative said Tuesday.

The nurses contract expired July 19, although talks continue. The next bargaining session is scheduled for Aug. 15.

But the union plans to announce a strike date on Friday, said Sarah Hurd, lead organizer with Illinois Nurses Association.

A strike would be the second in three years. Nurses walked out in 2020 before reaching agreement on the contract that recently expired.

Hurd said any strike date announced ahead of negotiations next week could be called off if progress is made at the talks.

“We are holding out hope that at our next bargaining session on the 15th that we can get some of the movement that we need,” she said.

The nurses on Thursday plan a bake sale to raise money for a strike fund and an informational picket outside the Madison Street entrance to the hospital from 7:30 to 10 a.m.