Some 650 physicians, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners at Minneapolis-based Allina Health have authorized an open-ended strike across 57 clinics in Minnesota and Wisconsin — with 90% voting yes — after more than two years of failed contract negotiations.

The providers, represented by Doctors Council SEIU, have been bargaining for their first labor contract since unionizing. Over 50 bargaining sessions have failed to produce an agreement on wages, benefits, and working conditions.

"Allina has really not come to the table with proposals that would keep primary care and urgent care sustainable," said Dr. Matt Hoffman, a union leader and family physician at Allina's Vadnais Heights Clinic. Union leaders have not yet issued the required 10-day strike notice, hoping the authorization vote pressures Allina to negotiate seriously when talks resume March 16.

The authorization represents a significant escalation in healthcare labor tensions. Primary care physicians striking is exceedingly rare — this would be among the largest physician work stoppages in recent U.S. history. For health system administrators: the labor dynamics that have disrupted nursing are now reaching the physician workforce.

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