Here in New York City, over 7,000 nurses are entering their third day of a strike at two major hospital systems that account for more than a quarter of all hospital beds in the city. They began striking Monday after failing to reach a new contract agreement with Mount Sinai Hospital and Montefiore Medical Center over demands for higher wages and better staffing. The two systems have more than 1,200 nurse vacancies between them.
Some nurses have shared job postings that offer visiting, non-union nurses $300 an hour to cross the picket line — more than five times the pay for a staff nurse. The nurses are also denouncing the inhumane treatment of patients, as some have been forced to receive medical care in hospital hallways due to overcrowding.
Meanwhile, the New York State Nurses Association urged people to continue seeking the care they need, writing, quote, “We appreciate solidarity from our patients — but going into
— source democracynow.org | Jan 11, 2023