New York nurses end strike after reaching deals with hospitals on staffing

A strike involving over 7,000 nurses at two New York City hospitals has ended after three days, as they reached tentative deals with hospitals over staffing levels, the New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA) said on Thursday, January 12.

Nurses at Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx and Mount Sinai Hospital in Manhattan will go back to work Thursday morning after reaching an agreement for “enforceable safe staffing ratios,” the NYSNA said in a statement.

“Through our unity and by putting it all on the line, we won enforceable safe staffing ratios at both Montefiore and Mount Sinai where nurses went on strike for patient care,” said NYSNA President Nancy Hagans.

Montefiore also agreed to new staffing language and financial penalties for failing to comply with safe staffing levels in all units, as well as community health improvements and nurse student partnerships to recruit local Bronx nurses to stay as union nurses at Montefiore for the long-run, the association said.

The nurses went on strike on Monday after contract negotiations stalled over pay and staffing levels, a move that caused Montefiore to reschedule all elective surgeries and procedures and postpone appointments at ambulatory locations. – Rappler.com