Thousands of nurses go on strike at several major New York City
hospitals
[January 12, 2026]
NEW YORK (AP) — Thousands of nurses in three hospital systems in
New York City went on strike Monday after negotiations through the
weekend failed to yield breakthroughs in their contract disputes.
Nurses were to start walking off the job at 6 a.m. at The Mount Sinai
Hospital and two of its satellite campuses. The other affected hospitals
are NewYork-Presbyterian and Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx.
About 15,000 nurses are involved in the strike, according to New York
State Nurses Association.
The strike, which comes during a severe flu season, could potentially
force the hospitals to transfer patients, cancel procedures or divert
ambulances. It could also put a strain on city hospitals not involved in
the contract dispute, as patients avoid the medical centers hit by the
strike.
The hospitals involved have been hiring temporary nurses to try and fill
the labor gap during the walkout, and said in a statement during
negotiations that they would “do whatever is necessary to minimize
disruptions.” Montefiore posted a message assuring patients that
appointments would be kept.
The work stoppage is occurring at multiple hospitals simultaneously, but
each medical center is negotiating with the union independently. Several
other hospitals across the city and in its suburbs reached deals in
recent days to avert a possible strike.
The nurses’ demands vary by hospital, but the major issues include
staffing levels and workplace safety. The union says hospitals have
given nurses unmanageable workloads.
Nurses also want better security measures in the workplace, citing
incidents like a an incident last week, when a man with a sharp object
barricaded himself in a Brooklyn hospital room and was then killed by
police.
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A medical worker transports a patient at Mount Sinai Hospital, April
1, 2020, in New York. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)
 The union also wants limitations on
hospitals’ use of artificial intelligence.
The nonprofit hospitals involved in the negotiations say they’ve
been working to improve staffing levels, but say the union’s demands
overall are too costly.
Nurses voted to authorize the strike last month.
Both New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and Mayor Zohran Mamdani had
expressed concern about the possibility of the strike. As the strike
deadline neared, Mamdani urged both sides to keep negotiating and
reach a deal that “both honors our nurses and keeps our hospitals
open.”
“Our nurses kept this city alive through its hardest moments. Their
value is not negotiable,” Mamdani said.
The last major nursing strike in the city was only three years ago,
in 2023. That work stoppage, at Mount Sinai and Montefiore, was
short, lasting three days. It resulted in a deal raising pay 19%
over three years at those hospitals.
It also led to promised staffing improvements, though the union and
hospitals now disagree about how much progress has been made, or
whether the hospitals are retreating from staffing guarantees.
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