University of Chicago Medical Center Lockout (2016)
Nearly 700 nurses at the University of Chicago Medical Center went on a one-day strike in 2016 over wages and staffing. The hospital locked them out afterward and hired temporary nurses.
The nurses returned and the two sides eventually reached a new contract.
The one-day-strike-then-lockout pattern gave employers leverage; unions responded by planning longer, open-ended strikes.
Brigham used the identical tactic in July 2026: a one-day strike met with a four-day lockout.
