Do you have questions about the negotiation process? Find quick answers to the most common topics right here.
Click the questions below to see the answers.
Pre-Strike Authorization
Yes. You have the right to continue coming to work and caring for patients. If the Teamsters call for a strike, more information will be provided to you about how you can continue working and how Corewell Health is working to provide a safe environment for all team members who choose to continue working.
You cannot be fined or subjected to official penalty from the Teamsters unless you have already joined the union and are paying dues. We do not believe this has happened yet for the vast majority of Teamster-represented team members.
No, you cannot be fired if you decide not to strike. You have the legal right to decide for yourself, without experiencing any retaliation
Yes, Corewell Health will provide a safe environment for team members who choose to continue working during a strike.
Negotiations with Teamsters and Strike Authorization
Updated 3.17.26
The Teamsters can only fine team members who have voluntarily become members of the Teamsters. It is important to understand that becoming a Teamsters member is different from being a part of the bargaining unit represented by the Teamsters. To become a member, team members would need to affirmatively join the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (or one of its local unions), which would likely include taking an oath administered by the Teamsters. Because membership is voluntary, we do not know which team members (if any) have signed up to become members of the Teamsters. But we expect that a large majority of our team members have not taken the steps to officially become a member of the Teamsters.
Nurses who are union members, or are unsure about what they might have signed, have a legal right to resign their membership at any time. That choice is completely up to each nurse who has become a Teamsters member, but nurses who resign their membership cannot be fined by the Teamsters if they work during a strike. More information is available from the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation at www.nrtw.org/corewell.
Any nurse who wants to work during a strike will be able to do so without resigning their employment. More information about this process will be shared in the event the Teamsters call for a strike.
Nurses who choose to work during a strike will receive their regular pay and benefits, including overtime when appropriate. As needed, Corewell Health will also utilize existing pay premium programs like critical staffing pay.
The safety of our patients and team members are our top priorities. Each campus has a site-specific security plan focused on ensuring patient access and supporting nurses and other team members coming to work. More information about these plans will be shared with nurses who choose to work in the event of a strike.
No, a strike will not disrupt your retirement date. Please follow standard retirement processes. If you choose to participate in a strike, your pay and benefits could be impacted, but you will be able to maintain your retirement date.
At this time there are no plans to re-assign team members to different areas or roles. We are working with an agency to help meet staffing needs across all patient care areas if a strike happens, and we will build schedules based on the skill sets of team members available to work.
Team members who are interested in working in a different area or unit during a potential strike will have an opportunity to submit their preference, but we are not currently planning to force any team members to redeploy to another area.
At this time there are no plans to re-assign team members to different areas or roles in the event of a strike. If you choose to continue working, you can remain in your current position. If you are in a hybrid role, you can work with your manager to determine if remote work during the strike would be possible.
No. All team members are legally allowed to work during a strike, regardless of how or if you voted for strike authorization.
Yes, there will be a process for team members to return to work before a strike ends. More information on that process will be shared if the Teamsters call for a strike.
There are no plans to close any Corewell Health facilities. Team members who wish to continue working during a potential strike can do so and remain in their current area.
If you participate in the strike, you cannot use FMLA on days that you are striking. FMLA leave is used to cover absences for an FMLA-qualifying reason from a schedule shift and striking employees are not scheduled to work. Team members who are not on strike, including those out on an approved FMLA leave of absence, can continue to request and utilize FMLA leave for qualifying reasons.
Pay
No, you will not receive pay from Corewell Health while you are on strike.
No. The State of Michigan does not allow workers who are on strike to collect unemployment benefits.
No, you must be actively working to make contributions to your retirement account and receive employer matching contributions.
Time off
No, you cannot use MESTA leave because you have not been scheduled to work and have indicated that you will not report to work.
If you choose to participate in the strike, you cannot use PTO to cover the days you strike.
Benefits
Depending on the length of the strike, your benefits, including medical, dental and vision insurance, will be impacted.
No, you must be actively working to be eligible for short-term disability benefits.
No, you must be actively working to be eligible for leave.
General
Corewell Health East (Corewell Health) and the Teamsters Local 2024 (Teamsters) began contract negotiations on June 24, 2025.
Contract negotiations between Corewell Health and the Teamsters are governed by a federal labor law called the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). The law requires that employers and unions negotiate in “good faith” to reach agreement. This includes meeting at reasonable times and conferring in good faith, bringing proposals to the bargaining table, responding to the other party’s proposals and working toward consensus.
We know compensation is always an important topic for all of our team members, and it is important to us as well. We plan to discuss compensation with the Teamsters during negotiations, as well as various non-wage proposals.
At this point it’s not possible to predict how long negotiations will take. We are committed to bargaining in good faith toward a contract that provides fair and competitive terms for our professional nurses while supporting our continued ability to provide exceptional care to our patients.
We will provide regular updates to nurses and nursing leadership.
The only topics that are required to be bargained (called mandatory subjects) are pay, benefits, and terms and conditions of employment, which include working hours, seniority, scheduling practices, promotions, transfers, and grievance processes. Neither side can make the other side bargain about anything that is not required. Non-mandatory subjects include patient care and procedures, equipment and supplies, the number of team members hired, promoted or discharged, and the right to manage and operate the hospital.
No one, not the union nor Corewell Health, can say what any final agreement may look like as a result of bargaining. Unions can negotiate on team members’ behalf for wages, benefits, and terms and conditions of employment, but they cannot guarantee specific outcomes – things can get better, stay the same or you could end up with less than what you have now. The Teamsters cannot guarantee improvements to wages, benefits, scheduling, work rules, overtime, or anything else it may have promised.