Approximately 16,000 union nurses have delivered notices to eight New York City hospitals announcing their intention to strike beginning on January 9th if a new contract agreement is not reached by then, according to a press release from the New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA).<\/p>\n
“NYSNA will continue to bargain non-stop between now and January 9th in the hopes of reaching agreements,” their release states.<\/p>\n
The 10-day notice of strike given to the eight hospitals allows time for the hospitals to plan patient care in the case that a strike begins, the union said.<\/p>\n
Nearly 99% of the union members voted last week to authorize the strike, which would impact seven hospitals in all five boroughs of the city.<\/p>\n
“Striking is always a last resort,” NYSNA President and nurse Nancy Hagans said in a press release last week. “Nurses have been to hell and back, risking our lives to save our patients throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, sometimes without the PPE we needed to keep ourselves safe, and too often without enough staff for safe patient care.”<\/p>\n
The union says hospitals aren’t doing enough to keep caregivers with patients and they say hospitals need to invest in hiring and retaining nurses to improve patient care.<\/p>\n
“Some of our colleagues have died, others will face the effects of long-Covid for years to come,” Hagans said. “Many of us have PTSD. All of us are fed up and exhausted.”<\/p>\n
The NewYork-Presbyterian hospital system said they hope they can reach a “fair and reasonable contract agreement,” in a statement to CNN. Three of their hospitals would be impacted if a strike occurred.<\/p>\n
“We respect and value all of our nurses, who play a central role in delivering the exceptional care that NewYork-Presbyterian is known for,” according to a statement from the hospital system. “We remain hopeful that union leadership shares our dedication to reaching a fair and reasonable contract agreement, and we will continue to bargain in good faith.”<\/p>\n
A spokeswoman for the Mount Sinai Health System said they value their nurses and share regular updates about negotiations on this website.<\/p>\n
“Our goal is to reach an agreement that continues to provide our valued nurses with competitive compensation and benefits and ensures a safe, supportive working environment that enables them to provide exceptional care to all our patients across the diverse communities we serve.”<\/p>\n