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KEVIN GUTTING

Nurses and management at Cooley Dickinson Hospital have reached tentative agreement on a three-year contract shortly before the hospital is due to decide on a merger with a larger institution. Nurses and their supporters are seen here holding an informational picket in front of the hospital on Locust Street in Northampton during August.

NORTHAMPTON - After 17 months of often contentious negotiations, Cooley Dickinson Hospital and the Massachusetts Nurses Association have reached a tentative agreement on a three-year contract covering 300 nurses.

The agreement, devised with the help of a federal mediator, comes as the hospital is poised to decide in late February whether to merge with Baystate Medical Center in Springfield or Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.

The new contract, hammered out just before 2 a.m. Tuesday, addresses sticking points that had held up negotiations, including staffing concerns, wages and "successor language" that requires a new owner to honor the contract with the nurses union.

It must still be ratified by the union's membership, which has scheduled a vote for Feb. 6.

"I've gotten a lot of thank yous as I walked through the hospital," said Sally Surgen, chairwoman of the CDH/MNA Nurses Committee. "People are happy with it ... I think everybody is satisfied. Concessions were made on both sides."

The pact includes across-the-board salary increases of 1 percent for all nurses in July of this year and in July 2013.

In addition, the agreement provides for a 1 percent "ratification bonus," effective Jan. 22 of this year, for all nurses. Further, nurses eligible for step increases will get a 1 percent increase effective the same day, as well as another 1 percent increase in January 2013.

In a statement Thursday, hospital officials said the new contract addresses CDH's dual goals of boosting salaries for nurses - which had fallen below the regional marketplace - while holding the line on costs.

"Though the long negotiations process was difficult at times, we look forward to a joint, renewed commitment to maintaining and improving on our high standards for patient care," President Craig Melin said in a statement.

Surgen said staffing trumped wages as the primary issue for the union, and in that regard the union is pleased that it will have more of a say in those matters moving forward.

The new contract sets up a joint MNA-Hospital Staffing Committee. That panel will monitor staffing and review potential adjustments.

"The staffing language is not exactly what we wanted, but it's a start," Surgen said.

Another thorny issue was the union's proposal for "successor language" requiring a new hospital owner to honor the contract. That language is contained in the agreement reached this week.

Under terms of the pact, nurses hired after the ratification date will be able to participate in the hospital's 403(b) retirement plan but not the current "defined benefit" pension plan. That issue also proved contentious during negotiations.

A defined benefit plan is a pension in which an employer promises a specified monthly benefit on retirement. The benefit is determined by an employee's earnings history, years of service and age. A 403(b), similar to 401k plans, creates retirement savings through investment in the stock market.

Nurses now employed in the bargaining unit will have until June 30 to choose whether to stay with the existing pension plan or move to the 403(b) plan.

Though the union was pleased that it was able to preserve existing vacation and sick time packages, it did have to compromise on the pensions, Surgen said.

"Overall, though, people are very happy that it's done and over with," she said. "Now we can move on."

The union is expected to hold an open meeting before its Feb. 6 vote. Though the deal covers 300 nurses, only 200 members will vote on the contract. Surgen said 100 nurses work on a per-diem basis and are not dues-paying union members.

Staff writer Chad Cain contributed to this report.