NYC Nurses Strike: Mount Sinai Talks Resume on 5th Day as NewYork‑Presbyterian Session Stalls and Montefiore Talks Remain on Hold
On the fifth day of a strike by roughly 15,000 New York State Nurses Association members at Mount Sinai’s three hospitals, NewYork‑Presbyterian and Montefiore, federal mediation prompted Mount Sinai to resume talks while an overnight session with NewYork‑Presbyterian produced little progress — the union says it offered revised staffing proposals that NYP rejected without a counteroffer — and Montefiore says negotiations have not restarted. The walkout, driven by demands for safe staffing ratios, preserved benefits, workplace‑violence protections and limits on AI, has led hospitals to hire thousands of temporary nurses amid warnings of canceled procedures and ambulance diversions, while state and city leaders declared a state of emergency and hospitals called the union’s economic demands unsustainable.
📌 Key Facts
- The strike began Monday, Jan. 12, 2026, with roughly 15,000 nurses walking off at five privately run hospitals: Mount Sinai (main hospital plus Morningside and West), Montefiore Einstein, and NewYork‑Presbyterian/Columbia.
- Gov. Kathy Hochul declared a state of emergency and signed orders to have State Department of Health staff on‑site at impacted hospitals; newly installed Mayor Zohran Mamdani publicly joined picket lines and voiced support for the nurses.
- The union’s core demands include safe staffing ratios, preservation of nurses’ health‑care benefits, stronger workplace‑violence protections, and limits on use of artificial intelligence in clinical settings.
- Hospitals have called the union’s proposals financially unreasonable — citing figures such as a $3.6 billion price tag and nearly 40% wage increases — and argue they will maintain care using thousands of temporary nurses and other contingency plans.
- Montefiore has publicly accused NYSNA of seeking protections that would prevent termination of nurses found impaired on duty and characterized the union’s economic demands as 'reckless,' while the union points to hospitals’ cash reserves and rising CEO pay as evidence hospitals can afford concessions.
- By the fifth day of the strike (Jan. 16), talks with Mount Sinai’s three affected hospitals restarted at a mediator’s request; NewYork‑Presbyterian met with a federal mediator Thursday night but the session produced little progress and no follow‑ups are scheduled, and negotiations with Montefiore remain on hold with the system saying no meeting was planned.
- The union says it offered revised staffing proposals to NewYork‑Presbyterian that the hospital rejected without a counteroffer; hospitals continue to insist they already have strong staffing ratios and call the union’s math 'outlandish.'
- The walkout is occurring during a severe flu season, raising risks of patient transfers, procedure cancellations and ambulance diversions; hospitals say operations are continuing 'smoothly' with replacement staff, while both sides urge patients not to avoid seeking care.
- Tensions have manifested on picket lines and in communications: Mount Sinai’s CEO released a video accusing some union nurses of bullying colleagues who chose to keep working, and hospital officials have accused the union of putting self‑interest ahead of patient safety.
📊 Relevant Data
In a 2024 survey by National Nurses United, 81.6% of nurses reported experiencing at least one type of workplace violence in the past year, with 67.8% reporting verbal threats or abuse and 45.3% experiencing physical violence.
Workplace violence against nurses, in 3 charts — Advisory Board
Black and African American nurses reported significantly higher student debt burdens than nurses from other racial and ethnic groups in a 2025 cross-sectional study, which also found racial and ethnic disparities in burnout and intent to leave the profession.
Examining Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Nurse Burnout, Intent to Leave, and Student Debt Burden: A Cross-Sectional Study — PMC (PubMed Central)
In a 2025 study, 49% of healthcare professionals surveyed expressed worry that AI will replace jobs, while 55% believed AI can help reduce burnout among healthcare workers.
The U.S. nursing shortage is projected to require 1.2 million new registered nurses by 2030, driven by factors including the retirement of over 1 million nurses and an aging population increasing healthcare demand.
Nursing Shortage: A 2024 Data Study Reveals Key Insights — University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences
In 2023, nursing schools turned away over 65,000 qualified applications due to shortages of faculty, clinical sites, and resources, contributing to the ongoing nursing shortage.
The U.S. Nursing Shortage: A State-by-State Breakdown — NurseJournal
📰 Source Timeline (7)
Follow how coverage of this story developed over time
- On the fifth day of the strike, the New York State Nurses Association says contract talks have restarted with Mount Sinai’s three affected hospitals at the request of a mediator.
- Union and NewYork‑Presbyterian negotiators met Thursday night with a federal mediator for hours in their first session since the walkout began, but both sides say the meeting yielded very little progress and there are no further talks scheduled.
- The union says it offered revised staffing proposals that NewYork‑Presbyterian rejected without a counteroffer, while the hospital continues to call the union’s demands 'unreasonable' even as it insists it already has the 'best staffing ratios in the city.'
- Despite the union saying it expected to meet Montefiore officials Friday, Montefiore asserts no meeting was ever planned and negotiations there have still not resumed.
- Hospitals say operations continue 'smoothly' using thousands of temporary replacement nurses; Montefiore’s president emailed staff calling ongoing care 'another day, another miracle.'
- Talks between the New York State Nurses Association and NewYork‑Presbyterian are scheduled to resume Thursday, the fourth day of the strike; meetings with Mount Sinai and Montefiore are planned for Friday, though some hospitals have not agreed to sit down yet.
- Hospitals publicly claim the union’s proposals would raise average nurse pay at Mount Sinai from about $162,000 to nearly $250,000 in three years and to around $220,000 at Montefiore, figures the union calls 'outlandish math' but does not rebut with its own numbers.
- Nurses are emphasizing workplace-violence protections alongside staffing and benefits, with specific accounts of being scratched, bitten, kicked, sexually assaulted and otherwise attacked by patients, which they say hospitals have failed to address.
- Mount Sinai CEO Brendan Carr released a video accusing some union nurses of bullying and intimidating colleagues who chose to keep working, calling such behavior contrary to the hospital’s values.
- NewYork‑Presbyterian issued a statement saying it remains committed to negotiating a 'fair and reasonable' contract that reflects both respect for nurses and current healthcare financial constraints.
- Confirms that the New York City nurses strike has entered its second day as of Tuesday, January 13, 2026.
- Specifies that roughly 15,000 nurses are on strike across NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia, Montefiore Medical Center and Mount Sinai Hospital.
- Reports that affected hospitals have hired 'droves' of temporary nurses to fill staffing gaps while both sides urge patients not to avoid seeking care.
- Notes that newly installed Mayor Zohran Mamdani joined nurses on a picket line outside NewYork-Presbyterian and publicly praised them for seeking 'dignity, respect and the fair pay and treatment that they deserve.'
- Montefiore officials tell Fox News Digital that NYSNA leadership demanded that a nurse not be terminated if found to be ‘compromised by drugs or alcohol’ while on the job.
- Montefiore characterizes the union’s economic package as ‘$3.6 billion in reckless demands,’ including what it says are nearly 40% wage increases.
- The article quotes Montefiore’s senior vice president of strategic communications Joe Solmonese directly accusing NYSNA of putting ‘self‑interest before patient safety’ and reiterates the system’s claim that it will provide ‘safe and seamless care’ during the strike.
- The piece re‑states, from the union side, that the three hospital systems together held more than $1.6 billion in cash as of September 2025 and that CEO pay at those facilities rose 54% from 2020 to 2023, with one executive earning $26.3 million in 2024.
- AP piece confirms roughly 15,000 nurses are on strike across Mount Sinai’s main hospital and two satellite campuses, NewYork‑Presbyterian, and Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx.
- Details union’s core demands: safe staffing ratios, preservation of nurses’ health‑care benefits, stronger workplace‑violence protections, and limits on use of artificial intelligence in hospitals.
- Includes Montefiore’s claim that NYSNA is making “$3.6 billion in reckless demands” including nearly 40% wage hikes and protections against termination for nurses found impaired on duty, and hospitals’ assertions they are hiring temporary nurses and keeping appointments where possible.
- Notes the strike is unfolding during a severe flu season and could force patient transfers, procedure cancellations, and ambulance diversions, pushing strain onto other city hospitals.
- Confirms the strike has actually started, with nearly 15,000 nurses walking off the job Monday at five privately run hospitals: Mount Sinai Hospital, Mount Sinai Morningside, Mount Sinai West, Montefiore Einstein and NewYork-Presbyterian.
- Provides exact start times: nurses at Mount Sinai began striking at 6 a.m., while nurses at the remaining hospitals were slated to begin at 7 a.m.
- Adds detail that Gov. Kathy Hochul declared a state of emergency in anticipation of the strike and signed executive orders to ensure the State Department of Health has staff on-site at impacted hospitals.
- Includes sharper framing of union demands and hospital pushback, with NYSNA accusing 'wealthy' hospital systems of trying to cut nurse health benefits and hospitals calling the strike 'reckless' and accusing nurses of abandoning patients.
- Quotes New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani recognizing the strike, saying the city is 'prepared for any and all scenarios' and explicitly stating that 'no nurse should be asked to accept less pay, fewer benefits or less dignity.'