The largest nurses strike in NYC history entered its 24th day on Wednesday with nearly 15,000 caretakers still off the job.
Members of the NYC Council’s Progressive Caucus, including Tiffany Cabán, Alexa Avilés and Sandy Nurse, supported the nurses on the picket line outside NewYork-Presbyterian, one of the three private hospitals involved in the strike, in their fight for safer staffing. Staffing standards have been a sticking point in contract negotiations between the nurses’ union and hospital management.
“We’ve got you here till the end,” said Cabán, of Queens, to the nurses on the picket line. “One day longer, one day stronger.”
Nurse, of Brooklyn, said she joined the picket line in “solidarity with New York nurses fighting for what they are owed.”
The New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA), the union representing the striking nurses, zeroed in on NewYork-Presbyterian on Feb. 4, saying the hospital proposed safe staffing enforcement provisions that are weaker than other NYSNA hospitals in the city.
According to NYSNA, the hospital did not come to the bargaining table on Tuesday with a counterproposal on workplace violence and other contract issues.
Nancy Hagans, RN, president of the NYSNA, said the striking nurses’ demands for better staffing standards help protect both the caretakers and patients.
“Nurses are not backing down. This is day 24 and, as we’ve said over and over, every day out here on the strike line makes us stronger,” she said. “We have not waited in the bitter cold to settle for anything less than what our patients deserve.”
NewYork-Presbyterian denied the claim that management did not deliver a counterproposal on the issues.
“We did deliver a comprehensive proposal through the mediators on Feb. 2 that covers both economic and non-economic terms, which includes safe staffing and workplace violence,” a hospital spokesperson said. “We are waiting for NYSNA leadership to respond to our proposal.”
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Hagans said the nurses are committed to bargaining until they settle fair contracts. Their previous contract expired on Dec. 31, which led to the prolonged strike that began on Jan. 12.
“The 15,000 nurses fighting for safe staffing and protections from workplace violence are not just fighting for themselves; they are fighting for the future of healthcare,” she said. “We need management to get serious about bargaining so that we can get back to our patients.”
The other hospital systems affected by the strike in NYC are Mount Sinai in Manhattan and Montefiore in the Bronx.
Nurses strike: Progress and sticking points
NYSNA has reached a tentative deal to maintain its health benefits without any cuts.
In terms of salary, talks continue to unfold. Affected hospitals have said their nurses earn an average $160,000 a year. The nurses are looking for raises that could bring their salaries on average over $200,000, according to the hospitals in a New York Times article.
It is unclear where the bargaining currently stands on salary.
Still, key sticking points in contract talks include agreement on safe staffing standards and improved protections from workplace violence.
Meanwhile, NYSNA said its nurses will continue to picket this week, with the latest picket line times listed on its website at nysna.org.
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.
