Nurses on day two of the nurses stike outside Mount Sinai Hospital.
Photo by Lloyd Mitchell
The largest nurses’ strike in NYC history continued on Monday, even after 13 striking nurses were arrested during a protest in Midtown last week. Although the nurses were not on the picket line on Feb. 7 and 8 due to the extreme cold, contract talks resumed with significant progress reported throughout the weekend.
The nurses, represented by the New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA), reportedly secured improved staffing ratios in several areas of Montefiore in the Bronx, one of the three hospitals affected by the strike. Management and union reps also reached an agreement on a safe staffing standard for the first time in an outpatient unit, and won new nurse positions to improve patient safety and wait times.
The successful bargaining came on the heels of a major “speak out” on the Montefiore picket line on Friday, where nurses, labor leaders and politicians demanded the hospital settle the contract issues. The rally was in support of nurses at Montefiore, as well as those at the other two hospitals affected by the strike, Mount Sinai and NewYork-Presbyterian in Manhattan.
“We really appreciate all the solidarity we have received,” Pat Kane, RN, NYSNA executive director, said. “It’s a great reminder that New York City’s unions and elected officials keep this city a union town. It shows that this strike is not just about nurses, it’s about protecting care for all working people.”
amNewYork contacted Montefiore to ask about the negotiations, the staffing standards and how the progress will help nurses, hospitals, and patients, and is awaiting a response.
Meanwhile, negotiations continue to stall at Mount Sinai.
“Progress continues to be frustratingly slow, and we do not yet have closure on an agreement,” Brendan Carr, MD, CEO of Mount Sinai Health Systems, said in a statement.
On Thursday, more than a dozen nurses were arrested when they blocked the entrance to the Greater New York Hospital Association at 555 W. 57th St. on Feb. 5, refusing repeated police orders to disperse.
The nurses were released from custody the same day.
Nurses strike: picketing and progress
Nurses have been on picket lines almost every day since the strike started on Jan. 12. They did not picket on Saturday and Sunday due to freezing, single-digit temperatures and the city’s Code Blue alert.
Nearly 15,000 unionized nurses from NYSNA are striking over salary, better staffing ratios, workplace violence protections, and improved benefits.
The nurses previously made some movement during the strike at Mount Sinai and NewYork-Presbyterian, when both hospitals agreed to maintain the nurses’ health benefits. Healthcare benefits have not been on the bargaining table between Montefiore and the union.
Despite milestones of progress, the union said it will continue to advocate for key sticking points in the labor standoff.
“We continue to do hard work at the bargaining table, fighting for our patients and our communities,” Nancy Hagans, RN, president of NYSNA, said. “While our employers continue to use patients as bargaining chips, we know that patients deserve better and will continue to fight for the safe staffing standards that our patients deserve.”
The nurses maintain that they will continue to picket at all hospital locations until a contract deal is made. The affected hospitals and their emergency rooms remain open with the help of agency nurses and the NYS Department of Health. Both hospital management and NYSNA urge New Yorkers to seek hospital care if needed.