As the nurses’ strike enters its third week, fellow healthcare workers joined the picket line.
“We have to stand together, we have to fight for the patients, we have to fight for the excellent care that we give as a team at Mount Sinai West and I cannot wait to go back and do that,” Emily Anthonisen, a nurse practitioner at Mount Sinai West, said.
What You Need To Know
On Tuesday, members of the Committee of Interns and Residents union at Mount Sinai West joined nurses on the picket line
Picketing continued for a 16th day after a brief hiatus Sunday and Monday due to the winter storm
A spokesperson for NewYork-Presbyterian said the hospital has made “incremental progress and reached one tentative agreement”
Sources say all three hospital systems are expected to be back at the bargaining table on Wednesday
On Tuesday, members of the Committee of Interns and Residents union at Mount Sinai West were greeted with cheers and applause as they stood shoulder-to-shoulder with their colleagues, calling for fair contracts for nurses.
“Our team of residents who came out here to join us, who we miss very much, and it was very heartwarming to see them come out and support us. We just can’t wait to get back to work. We’re just dying to get back in,” Anthonisen said.
Picketing continued for a 16th day after a brief hiatus due to Sunday’s snowstorm.
The New York State Nurses Association says some progress has been made with Mount Sinai and NewYork-Presbyterian hospitals, which have agreed to protect nurses’ health benefits.
But as of Tuesday evening, union and hospital leadership hadn’t reached a final deal.
“It’s obviously definitely cold out here, but the power that we have and the energy we have is hotter than whatever freezing weather we have today. When we unite, we have the power to change things that are being done incorrectly,” nurse Tamara Mair said.
Some 15,000 nurses walked off the job on Jan. 12 after contract negotiations failed with three major private hospital systems: Mount Sinai, NewYork-Presbyterian and Montefiore.
Nurses are calling for better health benefits, increased staffing ratios, workplace safety and wage increases. Members of other unions say it’s important to stand in solidarity with nurses.
“We gotta come together because once they get one union, they’re gonna think they can take over every union, so we gotta stand together now before everything breaks down,” Smokey Sims, a SAG/AFTRA union member, said.
Nurses say they find strength in the support they’ve seen from their fellow healthcare workers and union members and are eager to return to work.
“We wanna get back to our patients who we miss and who we love, so we have faith that will come sooner than later,” Mair said.
A spokesperson for NewYork-Presbyterian said the hospital has made “incremental progress and reached one tentative agreement.”
Sources said all three hospital systems are expected to be back at the bargaining table on Wednesday.