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NYC nurses explain why they're striking
Thousands of nurses across New York City are on strike in what officials are calling "the largest nurses' strike in city history." FOX 5 NY's Jessica Formoso has the latest.
NEW YORK - New York City nurses on strike for nearly a month have made progress in contract negotiations, according to the New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA), with improved staffing ratios and new safety standards at Montefiore Medical Center on the way.
Still, the NYSNA says that hospitals have spent heavily on temporary staff, while continuing to pay for replacement nurses instead of settling contracts.
What they're saying:
"We continue to do hard work at the bargaining table, fighting for our patients and our communities," President of the New York State Nurses Association Nancy Hagans RN, BSN, CCRN said in a statement. "While our employers continue to use patients as bargaining chips, we know that patients deserve better and will continue to fight for the safe staffing standards that our patients deserve."
"It’s a great reminder that New York City’s unions and elected officials keep this city a union town. It shows that this strike is not just about nurses, it’s about protecting care for all working people," Pat Kane, RN, CNOR(e), executive director of the New York State Nurses Association, added in her statement.
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NYC nurses strike reaches day 24
The NYSNA says they do not agree with the hospitals' counterproposals.
Winter weather advisory suspends picket lines
The backstory:
All picket lines were suspended over the weekend due to a winter weather advisory, also according to the union.
Despite the pause, negotiations continued Friday and Saturday, with nurses and hospital representatives meeting at the Javits Center, heading to the agreement announced today with Montefiore nurses.
Broadly, nurses have kept up citywide actions, including rallies with labor and elected leaders, marches across the Brooklyn Bridge and nonviolent demonstrations in front of the League of Voluntary Hospitals and Homes.
The strike began in mid-January, with nurses from the Mount Sinai, New York-Presbyterian and Montefiore health systems pushing for what they deem to be a more favorable contract, according to NYSNA.
In addition to staffing demands, these nurses are asking for full funding for health care benefits, protection from workplace violence, protection for vulnerable patients, better pension plans and more.
According to the union, this is "the largest nurse strike in New York City history."
What we don't know:
It is not yet clear when a final agreement will be reached or when nurses will return to work.
Details on the next steps in negotiations have not been announced.
The Source: Information from a press release by the New York State Nurses Association, The Associated Press, Instagram and previous FOX 5 NY reporting.