The 3 year contract of these nurses with Montefiore, Mount Sinai, and New York Presbyterian ended on Dec. 31, 2026. With mentions of cutting health benefits for frontline nurses, N.Y.S.N.A. is negotiating for an agreement for safe staffing levels, full healthcare coverage and pensions, protection against violence in the work environment and a wage raise which Montefiore’s senior vice president for strategic communications considers to be reckless and irresponsible.
The agreement achieved from the strike 3 years ago after the COVID-19 pandemic is slowly being changed, and hospital management is failing to keep up with initial promises.
On Sunday, the N.Y.S.N.A. reports there has been progress made in the negotiations with the five hospitals. However, the spokespeople of these hospitals deem it economically impossible—especially while anticipating federal healthcare cuts in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. The Greater New York Hospital Association states hospitals have spent over $100 million on temporary staff in preparation for the strike.
“I’d probably be a bit concerned if my loved ones or friends were caught with the flu and the nurses were suddenly replaced or understaffed,” sophomore Elenor Li said.
The major hospitals on Long Island have already reached their contract agreements, effectively calling off a strike, making the wealthy hospitals in N.Y.C. an anomaly.
On Monday morning, the strike began at 6 a.m. at 3 hospitals with night shift nurses that just got off work. More nurses joined in to the strike after alerting their managers and ensuring the safety of their patients.
Many nurses are accusing these privately run hospital C.E.O.s of being greedy, not believing the wealthiest private hospitals in New York City are unable to afford the cost of settling the union contract offered. Nurses report seeing management cutting corners on staffing, which only leaves more pressure and stress on the rest of the hospital staff. They are urging for clarity and clear action to maintain a safe patient to staff ratio in hospitals.
A strike could be critical due to flu season, bringing risks and delay to patient care. Some hospital patients have vocalized their worry for how care will be delivered Monday when there is a shortage of nurses.
The situation escalated further after Jan. 9 when a patient who was armed with a knife, locked himself in a hospital room with a patient and a staff member, and reportedly threatened to harm others. The aftermath was bloody and violent. Workplace violence is unfortunately not uncommon for healthcare workers. Frontline staff report feeling ignored by management or even possibly that it was expected and normalizated to experience violence in their workplace.
8 out of 10 nurses experience workplace violence. Healthcare givers experience the highest rates of workplace violence compared to those in any other industry, and according to a survey by National Nurses United, these numbers are only increasing with growing distrust for the healthcare industry and frustration over long waiting time. Many nurses report a lack of support from management and unclear reporting mechanisms, resulting in over half of workforce violence for nurses going unreported.
A.I. oversight involved in the contract is raising concerns among nurses for unregulated A.I. usage. Especially with the testimonies of management of cutting costs and staffing.
“I think that nurses definitely should be concerned about A.I. in hospitals because we need human’s help and these nurses who have done so much for us for decades upon decades aren’t gonna be getting the treatment they deserve, the pay they deserve and the job that they deserve,” senior Naomi Zarnighian said. “There are so many people out there that want to help and want to be nurses and if A.I. is taking over parts of that job, we’re not gonna have those opportunities anymore.”
