Over 7,000 New York Nurses Went On Strike For Better Pay & They Are Sick Of Being Understaffed
Even patients were invited to join them.
A nurse in scrubs on strike. Right: A group of people on strike.
On January 9, over 7,000 New York nurses from two different hospitals went on strike to fight for better pay, more staffing, healthcare and retirement security.
The strike was hosted by New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA), and the demands are coming from Mount Sinai Hospital and Montefiore Bronx.
The issue comes after the NYSNA tried negotiating fairer contracts with hospital executives, according to a statement published by the NYSNA.
"After bargaining late into the night at Montefiore and Mount Sinai Hospital yesterday, no tentative agreements were reached," the statement reads.
New York City Central Labor Council President Vincent Alvarez believes the issue was created by hospital executives as they failed to upkeep proper staffing and gave themselves "compensation packages" in return.
State Senate Labor Chair Jessica Ramos was quoted in the NYSNA statement and seemed to agree.
"Rather than raising wages and ensuring hospitals have safe staffing ratios, hospital management has been granting themselves bonuses and pocketing money that could be used to strengthen our public health infrastructure," she said.
The statement from NYSNA also included a call to patients (unless they are sick and need medical care at the moment) and any other supporters who wanted to join in solidarity.
New Yorkers and healthcare workers from across the country are on Twitter sharing photos and videos of the strike and expressing their support for the medical staff.
\u201cI stand in solidarity with the #NYCNurseStrike. I am terrified of a day at @MountSinaiNYC without our essential frontline heroes, but without a fair and safe contract, nurses will continue to be spread too thin and patients will continue to suffer. #PatientsOverProfits\u201d— Lauren Roddy, MD, MSc (@Lauren Roddy, MD, MSc) 1673205285
On January 10, Mount Sinai announced that nurses represented by the New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA) at Mount Sinai Morningside and Mount Sinai West have come to an agreement for a three-year contract.
The contract guarantees a more than 19% pay increase over the contract's term for every nurse. They will be provided health care benefits for working nurses and those that are retired.*
Narcity reached out to Mount Sinai Hospital and Montefiore Bronx requesting comment on the strike. Only Mount Sinai provided a statement announcing the new agreement.
*This article has been updated.