Hawaii Nurses’ Association President Rosalee Agas-Yuu gave a motivational talk and then led a long procession of nurses Sunday morning as they returned to work at Kapi‘olani Medical Center for Women &Children.

The nurses, who overwhelmingly ratified a new three-year contract Wednesday, were excited to return to work after being locked out for 22 days, and posed for group photos before entering the hospital.

The procession started at about 7 a.m. at the Bingham Street roundabout and continued to the Diamond Head Tower of Kapi‘olani Medical Center.

Agas-Yuu praised the nurses for their determination and told them to walk into the hospital with their “head held high.”

“You guys have nothing to be ashamed of,” Agas-Yuu said. “Head held high when you go in. Safe-staffing forms — fill them out. From this point on, it’s a different day. We’re a fighting union. Don’t expect less. We deserve better. That’s what you fought for. That’s what you got locked out for. That’s the blood, sweat and tears.

“From this day on, you guys know the pain we felt. You got to carry it on and pass it on to the young ones. Let’s end it with a bang. … It’s just amazing. People will talk about you guys for years because of what you’ve done. … You probably diverted things that could have happened to other workers because of your stance. Let’s go back to work.”

Kapi‘olani Chief Operating Officer Gidget Ruscetta said last week that nurses will be phased in until roughly 600 nurses who have been locked out since Sept. 14 are back to work.

The new agreement includes:

>> Across-the-board raises that average out to 3.5% annually over nearly four years.

>> Longevity pay increases for registered nurses who have five, 10 and 15 years of experience at Kapi‘olani.

>> A staffing matrix that includes flexible staffing levels based on guidelines aligned with the Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses, American Nurses Association, American Society of PeriAnesthesia Nurses and Association of PeriOperative Registered Nurses.

>> A staffing council made up of Kapi‘olani nurses and nurse leaders that will meet monthly to address staffing issues and review the staffing matrix annually.

In addition, Kapi‘olani said it would use an innovative tool to determine scheduling needs for each unit and remain committed to ongoing nurse recruitment and retention programs.