NYC nurses strike nears as 15,000 face lapsed contracts at major hospitals

Nearly 15,000 New York State Nurses Association members at Montefiore Medical Center, Mount Sinai Hospital, Mount Sinai Morningside, Mount Sinai West and NewYork‑Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center were poised to strike Monday after contract talks blew past a Sunday midnight deadline with no deal. The union says walkouts would begin at 6 a.m. at Mount Sinai and 7 a.m. at the other affected facilities unless a last‑minute agreement is reached, with core disputes over wage increases, health benefits, protections from workplace violence, and staffing ratios that nurses cast as basic patient‑safety issues. Hospital systems issued a joint statement calling the threatened strike "reckless," accusing NYSNA of abandoning patients and saying union demands total $3.6 billion, including almost 40% in wage hikes, while Montefiore says it is preparing for a strike that could last weeks. Gov. Kathy Hochul signed an executive order directing the state Department of Health to oversee contingency plans at affected hospitals, as Mayor Zohran Mamdani vowed the city is "prepared for any and all scenarios" and insisted no New Yorker should lose access to care while also backing nurses’ calls for fair pay and dignity. Some nearby systems, including Northwell Health’s Nassau County hospitals, have already reached tentative deals with NYSNA, underscoring how the New York City showdown has become a flashpoint in wider national strains over pay and staffing in the post‑pandemic hospital workforce.