Article
What happened
The New York State Nurses Association had been bargaining with a dozen private hospitals in the city and suburbs. Several reached deals in the days before the deadline, including all three Northwell facilities in Nassau County, and other hospitals saw strike notices withdrawn. Talks failed at three systems: Mount Sinai and two of its Manhattan campuses, NewYork-Presbyterian and Montefiore in the Bronx. Picket lines formed early Monday morning.
The disputes cover pay, staffing levels, health coverage, pensions and protection from workplace violence. Montefiore puts the union’s demands at $3.6 billion, including wage increases of nearly 40%. The union counters that the hospitals are trying to cut nurses’ health benefits. Leaders of the affected systems described the walkout as reckless, and Montefiore said it was preparing for a strike lasting several weeks.
How the systems and the state prepared
Mount Sinai said it had 1,400 replacement nurses ready and that about a fifth of its own nurses reported for work on day one. All three systems said their hospitals and emergency departments would stay open. Gov. Kathy Hochul signed an executive order on Jan. 9 declaring a disaster emergency in Manhattan, the Bronx and Nassau County, which allowed supplemental staffing and placed state health department staff in affected hospitals. The timing is difficult: the strike lands during a severe flu season, raising the risk of transfers, canceled procedures and crowding at nearby hospitals.
What executives elsewhere should take from it
- Know your true cost of a strike. Replacement agency contracts, overtime, lost elective volume and reputational damage often exceed the gap between the final offers. Model those figures before talks reach a deadline.
- Treat staffing commitments as the core issue. The 2023 New York strike ended with raises and staffing pledges that the two sides still dispute. Clear, measurable staffing terms and joint tracking can prevent a repeat fight over what was promised.
- Take workplace violence seriously at the table. Security investments carry less cost than a stalemate, and they signal good faith to the broader workforce.
- Plan for spillover. Neighboring hospitals should prepare for diverted ambulances and patients who avoid struck facilities, especially during respiratory surges.
- Keep the board close. Trustees need a clear view of bargaining parameters and contingency spending well before a strike notice arrives.
How long this strike lasts will shape the next round of contracts across the region, and possibly beyond it.
Archive entry for Jan 12, 2026, added Nov. 11, 2026.