They had hot dogs, balloons and a message: The nurses at Whidbey General Hospital won’t back down until their contract terms are met.

More than a hundred nurses and their supporters rallied at the Captain Whidbey Inn in Coupeville Thursday night in hopes of turning up the heat as the union and hospital management try to agree on a contract.

“Management pays attention to what we’re doing, that we’re here demonstrating,” said P.C. Cable, a registered nurse. “We will take as long as required to get a fair contract.”

Cable’s comment brought applause and one hearty, “Yeah, that’s right!” from the crowd.

The nurse’s three-year contract expired in March, and the union and hospital management have engaged in three sessions with a state mediator. The next is scheduled for Monday.

The last round left Geri Forbes, the chief executive officer, “very encouraged,” she said at a board meeting last week.

“There is progress being made,” she said.

The hospital is in the fifth month of negotiations, and that’s not out of line with nurse negotiations at other area hospitals, hospital spokeswoman Trish Rose said in a prepared statement.

Recent negotiations at Providence Regional Medical Center Everett and Skagit Valley Hospital took nine and 11 months, respectively, she said.

“Whidbey General Board members, administrators and staff support our nurses and continually strive for a relationship with the local union that is mutually beneficial for both parties and ultimately best for our patients and our community,” said the hospital’s prepared statement.

Union leaders attending Thursday’s rally identified the following sticking points:

l Rest breaks — Nurses are supposed to get an uninterrupted 15-minute break every four hours. The hospital wants nurses instead to take intermittent breaks whenever they can be squeezed in. The union say nursing is a demanding job and nurses need those 15-minutes breaks off the floor.

l Pay — Nurses contend their pay lags behind that of other hospitals in the Pacific Northwest, and the last contract included small pay bumps that didn’t keep pace with even cost-of-living increases. Better pay is important for recruiting and retaining nurses, they say.

l Training — The union doesn’t like a proposal by the hospital that might, in some cases, have nurses pay back thousands of dollars in training fees if they don’t stay in a particular department long enough.

l Staffing — The state Department of Health cited the hospital recently for violating a state law to ensure nurses and hospitals work together to create nurse staffing plans that keep patients safe. The union wants more tools to make sure nurse’s have a way to voice concerns or ideas.

“We are taking care of our friends and neighbors — we’re part of the community,” said Gwen Parrick, a registered nurse. “This is what our love is. When you’re a nurse, caring for people is part of your life.

“We are committed to giving the best care we can.”

The hospital CEO’s telephone might be ringing off the hook this week. Union leaders asked everyone attending the rally to recruit at least three people to call Geri Forbes.

Nurses also said the hospital management asked them to remove yellow “Support Whidbey General Nurses!” signs from public places.

“You guys stick to your guns,” said one woman to the crowd, who identified herself as a licensed practical nurse who formerly worked at the hospital.

“Administration doesn’t know what you do. They need to work a shift.”

Then she added: “And I’m not taking down my sign.”