Thousands of nurses at two New York City hospitals are back at work, ending a three-day strike and tense negotiations. Nurses from Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx and Mount Sinai Hospital in Manhattan reached tentative agreements with hospital executives, resolving a major sticking point: short staffing. According to the nurses’ union, the new contracts include concrete, enforceable safe staffing ratios, along with pay increases totaling 19% over three years.
Nurses on the picket lines emphasized that already poor working conditions grew worse during the COVID-19 pandemic, putting patients at risk and leading to stress and burnout among employees. Nursing shortages are a nationwide problem, including in New Jersey. Union members are due to vote on ratifying the contracts by the end of next week.
