Why Are New York Nurses On Strike? Thousands Take To The Streets To Demonstrate

Over 7,000 nurses at two of the largest hospitals in New York City walked out Monday, taking to the streets after negotiations to address staffing shortages and stagnant salary increases stalled.

Several New York City hospitals recently agreed to deals that would fairly compensate their nurses, but when talks with Mount Sinai hospital on the Upper East Side in Manhattan and three locations of the Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx failed overnight, the nurses at those hospitals decided to strike.

"These nurses are dedicated professionals who provide quality patient care under unimaginable conditions day in and day out that were exacerbated by the pandemic," Mario Cilento, president of the New York State AFL-CIO, said in a statement Monday. "Now they are faced with the added challenge of short staffing that has reached critical levels and could compromise their ability to provide the best quality care to their patients."

"It is time for the hospitals to treat these nurses fairly, with the dignity and respect they deserve, and to negotiate in good faith, quickly, to ensure nurses can get back to serving their communities by providing superior care to their patients," the statement continued.

Mount Sinai and Montefiore said they had offered the same raises — totaling 19% over three years — that the nurses union had accepted at several other city hospitals. The union countered, saying the wage hike could not cover the undue stress stemming from staff shortages.

Both hospitals criticized the union for going on strike rather than accepting the standard offers.

"NYSNA leadership walked out of negotiations shortly after 1 a.m. ET, refusing to accept the exact same 19.1% increased wage offer agreed to by eight other hospitals, including two other Mount Sinai Health System campuses, and disregarding the governor's solution to avoid a strike," Lucia Lee, a spokesperson for Mount Sinai, said in a statement to CNN.

"We remain committed to seamless and compassionate care, recognizing that the union leadership's decision will spark fear and uncertainty across our community," read a statement from officials at Montefiore Medical Center.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul had been urging all sides to come to an agreement before nurses were led to strike, offering the parties to settle the matter through binding arbitration.

According to the Associated Press, Montefiore's administration said it was willing to let an arbitrator settle the contract "as a means to reaching an equitable outcome."

A statement released by the nurses union said Hochul, a Democrat, "should listen to the frontline COVID nurse heroes and respect our federally-protected labor and collective bargaining rights."

"Nurses don't want to strike," the statement says. "Bosses have pushed us to strike by refusing to seriously consider our proposals to address the desperate crisis of unsafe staffing that harms our patients."

The two hospitals now on strike make up a significant part of the city's health care system. Together they account for 16% of all hospital beds in the city. Montefiore accounts for more than half of the beds in the Bronx, according to CNN.

Both hospitals prepared for the strike prior to Monday, canceling elective surgeries, transporting patients to other hospitals and medical centers, and diverting a majority of ambulances to more staffed facilities.

The nurses union urged New Yorkers to not be fearful or concerned about seeking medical care due to the strike.

"To all of our patients, to all New Yorkers, we want to be absolutely clear: If you are sick, please do not delay getting medical care, regardless of whether we are on strike," the organization tweeted. "In fact, we invite you to come join us on the strike line after you've gotten the care you need."