FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, June 14, 2023
Contact: Kristi Barnes | press@nysna.org | 646-853-4489
Eliza M. Bates | eliza.bates@nysna.org | 646-285-8491
Nurses Held Peaceful Sit-In and Picket at H+H/Jacobi in the Bronx
NYSNA nurses who work for NYC Public Hospitals and Mayoral agencies escalate demands for racial justice and healthcare equity while working under expired contract
New York, NY—Dozens of NYSNA nurses from New York City Health+Hospitals (NYC H+H) / Jacobi Medical Center were joined by their fellow NYSNA members from other NYC public hospitals, as well as private sector nurses for a peaceful sit-in and picket at the Bronx hospital today.
Live video of the actions can be found at www.instagram.com/nynurses and more video and pictures available for press use can be found at www.facebook.com/nynurses.
NYC public hospitals are facing a crisis of chronic understaffing and high turnover due to low pay that harms patient care. NYC public hospital nurses are calling on Mayor Adams and the city to settle a fair contract with competitive pay that helps to recruit and retain enough nurses for safe, quality patient care at NYC’s public hospitals and mayoral agencies.
NYSNA President Nancy Hagans, RN, BSN, CCRN, said: “Today, NYSNA members throughout New York City united with our public hospital union siblings for a peaceful sit-in and picket to demand that Mayor Adams do the right thing for racial justice and healthcare equity. The mostly Black and Brown women who staff New York City’s public hospitals and Mayoral agencies shouldn’t have to wait one day longer for a fair contract that solves the crisis of understaffing and high turnover. Instead of throwing away hundreds of millions of dollars to line the pockets of for-profit temp staffing agencies, New York City should invest in the caregivers who saved our city during the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic.”
The protest comes on the heels of last week’s protest at Bellevue Hospital in Manhattan, and several more protests are planned for the coming weeks. Every day that nurses go without a fair contract is a day that more staff nurses leave the public sector and the city spends more than $1.5 million on temp travel nurses. Much of that money goes to for-profit staffing companies instead of into the pockets of Black and Brown New Yorkers caring for their communities. NYC could save hundreds of millions of dollars and solve the crisis of high turnover and chronic understaffing by raising pay for public hospital nurses, who make nearly $20,000 less a year than their private sector counterparts.
NYSNA Director at Large and President of NYSNA’s NYC Health+Hospitals/Mayorals Executive Council, Sonia Lawrence, RN, BSN, said: “It's time to respect public sector nurses and our patients. The mayor and NYC Health+Hospitals can start by delivering a fair contract with equitable, competitive pay that will fix the understaffing crisis once and for all, so we can provide the best possible care to all New Yorkers.”
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The New York State Nurses Association represents more than 42,000 members in New York State. We are New York’s largest union and professional association for registered nurses. NYSNA is an affiliate of National Nurses United, AFL-CIO, the country's largest and fastest-growing union and professional association of registered nurses, with more than 225,000 members nationwide.
For more information, visit nysna.org.
