NYSNA Update: July 17, 2026
St. Charles Nurses Win, Other Catholic Health Nurses Build Momentum
NYSNA nurses at Catholic Health/St. Charles Hospital overwhelmingly ratified a new contract on July 10. They negotiated for months, demanding enforceable safe staffing standards, and won! Read more contract highlights here and press coverage from Newsday, News 12 Long Island and Patch.
Rob Barone, RN, president of NYSNA’s local bargaining unit at St. Charles and an intensive care nurse, said: “I want to congratulate all the NYSNA nurses at St. Charles for the countless hours you spent fighting for a fair contract that will deliver the safe staffing our nurses and patients need. This vote shows that nurses are excited about what we were able to achieve and committed to move forward to make St. Charles an incredible resource for this community—now and into the future.”
Now NYSNA nurses at Catholic Health/ St. Joseph Hospital and St. Catherine of Siena are building momentum to be the next nurses to win great new contracts. Earlier today, St. Joseph nurses marched on the boss, demanding that management settle a fair contract now. Led by LBU Chair Heather Gabler and the rest of the executive committee, they turned out in force with a petition to demand quick agreement on a fair contract. After 15 bargaining sessions stretched over several months, management refuses to agree to reasonable terms that would provide St. Joseph nurses parity with other NYSNA-represented hospitals in the Catholic Health System. The message from NYSNA RNs at St. Joe's today was loud and clear: Fair contract now! The next negotiation is Tuesday, July 21. Stay tuned.
Northstar/Claxton-Hepburn Nurses Fight Back Against Proposed Unit Closure
Earlier this week, our members learned that Northstar/Claxton-Hepburn submitted a plan to close its maternal health unit. As one of only two hospitals in St. Lawrence County that still has maternal health services, members spoke out about the devastating impact this closure would have on patient care and their community hospital. They are mounting a fight-back to save essential healthcare services and good jobs in the North Country. Sign their community petition today, and stay tuned for more updates about upcoming actions and community forums to support the fight. Read NYSNA’s statement condemning the cuts and coverage of the issue in North Country Now and WWNY.
Montefiore Nurses Launch Email Action to Push Back on Layoffs
NYSNA nurses at Montefiore kept up the pressure on management this week by launching a new digital action, demanding that hospital administrators post vacancies that have been open for months. Already, the Montefiore system is feeling the effects of laying off utilization nurses and replacing them with artificial intelligence-powered software. Management laid off three CTCC nurses from Montefiore Moses, despite several unposted CTCC vacancies in the same department at Montefiore Weiler and in the new SICU at Moses. Nurses felt strongly that Montefiore should post these jobs so that the Moses CTCC nurses could apply, relieving any disruption or financial burdens from the initial layoffs; so, nurses launched an email action demanding that administrators post the openings. Keep up the great work, Montefiore nurses!
Montefiore nurses who haven’t yet participated in the digital action can do so here.