An area hospital and its registered nurses will take a holiday break in their efforts to resolve a contract dispute, according to a statement released Tuesday, by SEIU Healthcare, the union representing the RNs.

 

The wage pact for the more than 800 nurses at UPMC Altoona was scheduled to expire at the end of December, but the two sides have agreed to extend the contract until the end of January, with negotiations resuming early next year. No date has been set.

 

A session on Monday was the first since RNs at the hospital authorized their bargaining committee to issue a 10-day strike notice, if a tentative agreement wasn’t reached.

 

Union Local President Paula Stellabotte, an RN in the ICU said, in the contract talks, the nurses are working for better staffing, in an effort to provide better care and lower healthcare costs.