More than 300 nursing home workers across the Twin Cities walked off the job Tuesday, opening a three-day unfair-labor-practice strike at five metro facilities. The workers and their union say they are turning up the heat to win raises, better benefits, and safer staffing ratios that they argue are critical to protecting residents and stabilizing an industry they describe as chronically understaffed.
The union filed formal 10-day notices and said members at the five homes voted overwhelmingly to authorize the ULP action. The filings set picket lines for April 20–22, according to SEIU Healthcare Minnesota & Iowa. SEIU said the strike was called after contract talks stalled and that members authorized the work stoppage to press employers for higher wages and staffing that meet residents’ needs.
About 300 workers were reported on picket lines across the metro, and union leaders told local outlets that ongoing staffing shortages have affected the level of care residents receive. “The employer refuses to respect our members,” Dr. Rasha Ahmad Sharif said, as quoted in CBS Minnesota. The walkout is expected to continue through Wednesday, union leaders said.
Which Homes Are Affected And How Operators Are Responding
The union filing names five facilities involved in the strike: Estates of Roseville, Estates of Fridley, Estates of Excelsior, Estates of Saint Louis Park, and Cerenity Care on Humboldt. Organizers said pickets will rotate across those sites. Facility operators, including Monarch Healthcare Management, which runs several Estates locations, say they have contingency staffing plans in place to maintain care and remain ready to bargain, according to reporting in the Sahan Journal.
Why Workers Say They’re Striking
Workers and advocates point to years of low wages, high turnover, and routine understaffing, problems union leaders say worsened after the pandemic and have fueled repeated contract fights across the metro. Past coordinated actions, including a 1,000-worker ULP strike in March 2024 and a series of bargaining campaigns since then, are part of a larger push to win enforceable staffing standards and higher pay, as documented by Minnesota Reformer.
What A “ULP” Strike Means Legally
Because the union has labeled the walkout an unfair-labor-practice strike, participants may have different legal protections than they would in an economic strike if the National Labor Relations Board ultimately finds employer violations. Court precedent and board decisions say ULP strikers can be entitled to reinstatement and back pay when unlawful conduct is proven. Minnesota nursing homes have been the subject of recent bargaining complaints in NLRB dockets and filings. See a Supreme Court discussion of ULP remedies and the board docket for a local case. (Cornell Law; NLRB case.)
Union organizers said pickets will continue through Wednesday and urged community supporters to pay attention to negotiations, while operators stressed they have plans in place to keep residents safe. Negotiators on both sides said they remain available to return to the table, and local reporting indicates talks could resume in the coming days as the three-day action proceeds. (CBS Minnesota.)
