Day 2 of the nurses strike in NYC in 2026.
Photo by Lloyd Mitchell
The longest nurses strike in NYC history may be over by Valentine’s Day, as NewYork-Presbyterian, the third and final affected hospital, came to a tentative agreement with the picketing caretakers late Tuesday night.
More than 4,200 nurses at NewYork-Presbyterian on Feb. 10 joined nearly 11,000 New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA) members at Montefiore and the Mount Sinai Hospital system in voting on whether to ratify tentative agreements with their hospitals.
The NewYork-Presbyterian NYSNA members began to vote on Feb. 10 and, like the nurses at the other two hospitals, will continue voting throughout Wednesday.
If the contracts are ratified, most nurses will return to work by Saturday, Feb. 14 — putting an end to the month-long strike that was marked by walkouts, labor standoffs and arrests.
The NewYork-Presbyterian proposal, according to NYSNA, delivers the same contract priorities to all the striking nurses at different hospitals and includes tentative agreements that nurses have negotiated over the last several months, including a salary increase by more than 12% over the life of the three-year contract to recruit and retain nurses for safe patient care.
“We believe all striking nurses deserve to see the details of their tentative agreements and get the opportunity to vote on whether to ratify a new contract,” Nancy Hagans, RN, president of NYSNA, said. “As a democratic, member-led union that responds to its members, we are moving forward with a vote on tentative contracts at all four hospitals with the goal of returning all nurses to work as soon as possible.”
NewYork-Presbyterian confirmed the tentative agreement late Tuesday night.
“NewYork-Presbyterian accepted the mediators’ proposal presented on Feb. 8,” a hospital spokesperson said. “NYSNA is now bringing it to a vote with our nurses represented by NYSNA.”
Other tentative agreements include those around safe staffing standards, protections from workplace violence and, for the first time, a safeguard against AI in their contracts.
Nurses enter day 9 of the Nurses strike.Photo by Lloyd Mitchell
NYSNA and management at the other affected hospitals, Mount Sinai and Montefiore, reached their tentative agreements on Monday. Following the milestone deal, Bronx City Council Member Justin Sanchez said he was thankful to see nurses returning to work.
“Nurses are invaluable to our city. They are on the front lines every day, keeping our hospitals running and New Yorkers healthy. This agreement recognizes their work, and as a result, our communities are stronger and healthier,” he said. “This moment should be a turning point. Our city is at its strongest when workers are protected, respected, and supported, and when our institutions have the resources they need to operate at full capacity.”
A month of picketing, bargaining, arrests and extreme cold
Reaching the last mile of the strike was challenging for the parties involved. The NYSNA nurses began contract negotiations in September, but progress was minimal before their contract expired on Dec. 31.
While some private hospitals with NYSNA nurses successfully negotiated new terms and avoided a strike, bargaining stalled at others, leading to the start of the historic labor dispute on Jan. 12. Throughout the city’s extreme cold snap, nurses were on the picket line almost every day in their mission for a fair contract.
More than a dozen nurses were arrested during the strike after blocking the entrance to a Midtown trade association that represents hospitals and health systems.
The nurses were released from custody the same day.
NYSNA is expected to announce the results of the ratification vote at all affected hospitals on Wednesday evening.