Nearly 16,000 nurses at some of New York City’s largest private hospital systems are preparing to walk off the job after contract talks collapsed, setting the stage for one of the biggest healthcare strikes the city has seen in years.
The planned strike is expected to begin Monday after months of negotiations failed between hospital executives and the New York State Nurses Association, which represents nurses across multiple facilities in the city.
At the center of the dispute are demands over pay, health insurance coverage, chronic understaffing, and workplace safety.
Nurses say conditions have continued to worsen while hospital leadership refuses to meet their concerns.
The strike would impact the Montefiore, Mount Sinai, and New York Presbyterian health systems, three of the largest private hospital networks operating in New York City.
Union members rallied Friday outside the Manhattan offices of the Greater New York Hospital Association and the League of Voluntary Hospitals and Homes of New York, the groups negotiating on behalf of hospital management.
Nurses at the rally said executives have ignored frontline workers despite years of increased workloads and rising living costs. Many argue the hospitals can afford raises but have chosen not to prioritize staff.
Montefiore nurse Michelle Gonzalez said nurses are prepared to keep fighting. She told Politico, “We are going to continue to fight to get what we feel our patients and our communities deserve.”
Beyond wages, nurses are also demanding stronger protections against workplace violence, an issue that has intensified concerns following recent incidents inside hospital facilities, per the Daily Mail.
Tensions escalated further after a violent incident on Thursday at New York Presbyterian’s Brooklyn Methodist Hospital, where police fatally shot a man armed with a knife who took a patient and a hospital worker hostage.
Nurses say the shooting highlights how dangerous hospital environments have become, especially with staffing shortages that leave fewer workers available to respond to emergencies.
Contracts between the union and 12 New York City hospitals expired at the end of 2025. In several cases, the union agreed not to strike because those hospitals primarily serve low-income and Medicaid patients.
Instead, the strike is focused on the three major systems where nurses say executives have refused to budge on wages and benefits during negotiations.
Beth Loudin, a pediatric nurse at NewYork-Presbyterian, said hospital leadership appears prepared for a walkout. She told reporters, “They’re ready for us to walk on Monday.”
The looming strike presents an early test for newly sworn-in Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who was endorsed by the nurses union but has not publicly intervened in the dispute.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) issued an executive order declaring a state disaster emergency, warning the strike could create an “immediate and critical need” for hospital staffing and urging both sides to remain at the table.
