MINNEAPOLIS  — Nurses have returned to work after ending a weekslong strike against five Allina Health hospitals in the Minneapolis area.

A spokesman for the Minnesota Nurses Association says the nurses returned to work Sunday.

A majority of union members ratified the agreement Thursday, just days after Gov. Mark Dayton called both sides back to the bargaining table.

About 4,000 nurses had been on strike since Labor Day. A weeklong strike was also held in June. Health insurance benefits were a major issue.

Union Executive Director Rose Roach says the agreement improves workplace safety issues, staffing policies and ensures health benefits won’t be reduced.

The affected hospitals were United Hospital in St. Paul, Mercy Hospital in Coon Rapids, Unity Hospital in Fridley and Abbott Northwestern and the Phillips Eye Institute in Minneapolis.