Union sets Oct. 15 deadline for AGH contract talks agreement

The union representing about 1,500 nurses and nurse practitioners at Allegheny General Hospital has pledged to hold a strike authorization vote on Oct. 15 unless a new contract is in place before then.

SEIU Pennsylvania’s three-year contract with Allegheny Health Network expires Wednesday. About 100 AGH nurses rallied Friday at Allegheny Commons Park, reiterating their call for the multibillion-dollar healthcare network to increase staffing levels they say have not kept pace with patient numbers.

“We’re seeing much sicker patients, and we’re seeing way more of them. … That hospital is jam-packed every day,” said Kelsey Madden, 33, a nurse who has been at AGH for about a year and a half and who also spoke at the rally.

It’s a problem that leaves nurses frustrated and anxious, he said. Eventually, some burn out and leave.

“We need that mentorship,” said Madden, who came to the profession later in life after a stint as a software engineer. “I was really privileged to have a wealth of knowledge on my unit. I learned so much from the people who came before me. A lot of the nurses who oriented me have either left the bedside or moved on to different positions because the conditions in the hospital are unconscionable.”

Madden, a member of the union’s bargaining committee, said the two sides have come to agreements on some issues but not the “big-ticket items.”

AHN said “good faith” negotiations are ongoing.

“We continue to bargain in good faith with our represented nurses at AGH to reach an agreement,” a company spokesman said.

Somewhat ironically, Friday’s rally — where a major topic was how busy the hospital has become — began a couple of minutes late because noise from a LifeFlight helicopter made it impossible to hear anything. It was the third one to take off or arrive since organizers had begun setting up for the noon rally, they said.

Pittsburgh City Councilman Bobby Wilson, a Democrat who represents the North Side, was among the speakers and pledged his support for the union. As he spoke, he pointed to the nurses standing behind him holding signs with slogans such as “Staffing Should Meet Patient Needs” and “Experience Matters for Quality Care.”

His mother received a liver transplant at AGH, he said.

“It was pretty hard times for our family … but I tell you who were the superstars that kept my mom running. It was you all back here, so I want to thank you for that,” he said to cheers from the nurses.

The union’s contracts have included staffing standards for two decades, said SEIU chapter President Annale Yobbi, a LifeFlight nurse whose tenure at AGH dates to 1992, prior to the union’s formation. The current deal also mandates a $40 an hour starting salary, a provision designed to attract and retain — the best people. Still, the union now says it isn’t enough as the number of patients has outstripped AGH’s projections, along with the care they require.

“Let me ask you something,” Yobbi said to the rank-and-file. “Are we caring for the same patient population and the same acuity we were caring for in 2023?”

“No!” the nurses behind her shouted.

The strike authorization vote represents an escalation of pressure on management, but it does not necessarily mean a stoppage is imminent. If the vote passes, the bargaining committee will issue a strike notice first.

“Let me be clear,” Yobbi said to the crowd of a few dozen before her, many of them media members. “As nurse professionals, we never take this decision to strike lightly, but we have to take a stand for our patients, our profession and our community.”

This story originally published at 4:05 p.m. Oct. 9, 2026.