James Ford at WPIX-TV reports that as the fourth week of the New York City Nurses’ Strike began on Monday (February 2nd), hundreds of Nurses marked that milestone by marching down the streets of Midtown to Governor Kathy Hochul’s Office for a protest in which they both criticized New York State’s Chief Executive and called on her to do more to help bring the labor dispute to a close. Their presence was quite a sight: A sea of hats, scarves, and coats, all in red – the color of their Union – the New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA). They filled the main floor of Grand Central Terminal late Monday morning and from there moved en masse across Manhattan and Uptown more than a dozen blocks to the Governor’s Manhattan office. Chanting, carrying signs, playing noisemakers and blowing whistles, the Nurses made sure that they could not be ignored as they marched to the skyscraper at 55th Street and Third Avenue to send the Governor a message. “I’ve been a nurse for (47) years,” said Carol McGowan, who said that Nurses at Mt. Sinai, New York-Presbyterian, and Montefiore were being unappreciated and that their patients were being put in danger. “I am ready to fight and I’ll continue to fight.” Once they finished their 3/4-mile march, the Nurses filled the plaza in front of the Governor’s Office Building, as well as much of the block across the street. Speaker after speaker, through a bullhorn, criticized Hochul for the Executive Order she’d signed before the strike was declared that allowed Traveling Nurses to come to New York to fill in for some of the nearly 15,000 Nurses who walked out. Nurses say the Governor’s order had allowed the labor dispute to wear on – against them. The Hospitals have reported spending more than $100 million to pay and house the Traveling Nurses. Hilda Haynes-Lewis, a Nurse Practitioner, said the Hospitals’ actions were wrong during the Strike and that in the months and years leading up to it, the Hospitals had put patients’ health in danger.
To Continue Reading This Labor News Story, Go To: Nurses march to Hochul’s office to demand action as strike enters 4th week
Photo Courtesy Of The New York City AFL-CIO Central Labor Council