Striking nurses said they’ve reached an agreement to keep their health benefits as negotiations continue with Big Apple hospitals and a union work stoppage hits a third week.
The New York State Nurses Association announced over the weekend that members at Mount Sinai and NewYork-Presbyterian struck a deal with their employers to maintain current health coverage – though both hospitals have repeatedly insisted its workers never faced benefits cuts.
“NYSNA nurses fought and cleared a major hurdle on one of the key sticking points in bargaining—maintaining health benefits for frontline nurses and our families,” the NYSNA said in a statement.
About 15,000 nurses – the most in the city’s history – have been off the job since Jan. 12 as they fight for new contracts with Mount Sinai, NY-Presbyterian and Montefiore.
Other issues that have caused the strike to reach a 15th day on Monday include pay, staffing levels and workplace safety.
A NY-Presbyterian spokesperson said in a statement the hospital agreed to work with nurses on “potential savings and programs in our nurses’ healthcare plan.”
“We never proposed eliminating health benefits, rather, our comprehensive proposal has always included health benefits that are some of the best in the nation,” the spokesperson said.
Mount Sinai referred to an earlier statement that said it was not looking to cut benefits and called the union’s complaints a mischaracterization.
Montefiore, which was not mentioned in the NYSNA’s statement, said health benefits have not been an issue during negotiations.
Nurses didn’t picket Sunday and aren’t staging a protest Monday due to the battering snow storm that hit the tristate area with the union stating its members “are ready and willing to bargain in good faith on other priority issues to settle fair contracts whenever mediators call us back to the table.”
The contracts are being separately negotiated with the hospital systems.
NY-Presbyterian said the mediator confirmed bargaining is scheduled again for Tuesday.
