New York, Dec 22- The nurses of twelve hospitals in New York have threatened to go on strike if an agreement is not reached soon for a new collective agreement.
The current agreement expires on December 31, so more than 17,000 nurses, who work in the main private hospitals in the state, such as Mount Sinai, Montefiore and Presbyteriano, and who are affiliated with the Association of Nurses of the state of New York, voted in favor of a work stoppage if an agreement is not reached, said channel 7 of the ABC network.
According to the organization that represents them, about 99% voted to authorize the strike, at a time when cases of covid-19 and the flu are increasing in the city,
“Many of us were traumatized by what we saw and by the conditions we have been working in since the pandemic began. The lack of staff makes everything worse,” Nigerian nurse Ari Moma told the channel.
The president of the Association, Nancy Hagans, assured that the strike is always the last resort “but we are prepared if our bosses do not give us another option.”
“Nurses have been to hell and back, risking their lives to save our patients during the covid-19 pandemic, sometimes without the personal protective equipment we needed to keep us safe, and all too often without enough staff for safe patient care,” he said.
According to the union, hospitals have raised rates for health care services but are not hiring staff to fill the gaps or adequately paying nurses for their work throughout the pandemic, the union said. Nurse Aretha Morgan.