STATE COLLEGE — 950 hospital workers at Mount Nittany Medical Center began negotiations for a new union contract with the non-profit health system this week according to SEIU Healthcare Pennsylvania — the state’s largest union of nurses and healthcare workers.

Workers say they are eager to make key improvements to staffing and safety in order to continue delivering region-leading patient care.

For the seventh year in the row, Mount Nittany achieved a Five-Star rating from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). The hospital was also named one of the “World’s Best Hospitals” by Newsweek this year for the fifth time, the union noted.

“Mount Nittany isn’t just the leading hospital in our region for patient care. It’s one of the best in Pennsylvania and across the nation,” said Josh Rosefsky, a maintenance worker and union chapter vice president, who has worked at the medical center for 15 years and serves on the Bargaining Committee. “We’re looking forward to working together with management to address serious concerns, so we can keep this hospital a leader in safe and compassionate care. We want to live up to the high standards that our patients and our community count on.”

Workers say stronger recruitment and retention are essential as demand for care grows and workforce shortages persist. The population of Pennsylvania is older, sicker and requires more complex care than ever before, they said. At the same time, the state is facing the worst nursing shortage in the entire nation, along with shortages of many other healthcare positions, and workers say Mount Nittany Medical Center should continue to be a leader in addressing the crisis.

SEIU Healthcare Pa. said Mount Nittany Medical Center is very financially healthy and has more than enough resources to invest in retaining and recruiting staff, with over $164 million in total profits on $477 million in total revenue in fiscal year 2024. In 2025, the Mount Nittany Health System reported $1.7 billion in total assets, and in 2024, Mount Nittany Health compensated its CEO over $2.6 million per the system’s tax return. The medical center’s new patient tower is also set to open later this year.

“It has to be our top priority to invest in wages that have the ability to retain and recruit staff across all departments for quality patient care,” said Jadyn Maske, an Environmental Services worker and Bargaining Committee member. “We take pride in taking good care, from hands-on care with patients to keeping the hospital clean and disinfected and preparing nutritious meals. We want to keep these jobs competitive, and we know Mount Nittany has the resources to do that.”

Staffing is also a key priority for workers to address workplace violence and safety, after a patient attacked staff and threatened other patients at Mount Nittany Medical Center in March. Healthcare workers suffer more non-fatal injuries than any other profession, including law enforcement, and studies show that adequate staffing levels are critical for safety, SEIU Healthcare Pa. said. Understaffing aggravates patients’ frustrations and leaves hospital workers unable to adequately de-escalate dangerous situations or respond to them when they happen, the union added.

“As the people on the frontlines of care, it’s not uncommon for us to regularly experience verbal and physical abuse from patients and their families who don’t have the healthcare and support that they need,” said Fawn Guignet, a registered nurse in Mount Nittany’s Emergency Department and Bargaining Committee member. “We’re also concerned about other safety issues such as outdated equipment. We’re looking forward to discussing and implementing safety measures, which other providers already have, so we can meet patients’ needs while keeping everyone safe.”

Almost all the staff at Mount Nittany Medical Center throughout every department are represented by SEIU Healthcare Pa. The workers include registered nurses, emergency department technicians, lab technicians, skilled maintenance, pharmacists, certified nurse aides, environmental services aides (who clean and disinfect the hospital), radiology technologists and dietary aides, among many others.

Their contract expires on July 1.