Nurses Say They Have A Tentative Deal To End Nearly Month-Long Strike

Thousands of New York City nurses are preparing to return to work after reaching tentative contract agreements following the largest nursing strike in city history. The New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA) announced Monday that approximately 10,500 members at Montefiore, Mount Sinai Hospital, and Mount Sinai Morningside and West have secured deals that could end their nearly month-long strike.

“For four weeks, nearly 15,000 NYSNA members held the line in the cold and in the snow for safe patient care,” said NYSNA President Nancy Hagans in a statement released by the union. “Now, nurses at Montefiore and Mount Sinai systems are heading back to the bedside with our heads held high.”

The tentative agreements, which must still be ratified by union members, include several key victories for the nurses. According to documents shared with Gothamist, the new contracts would provide salary increases of 12% over three years, with 4% raises in March 2026 and 2027, followed by additional increases in 2028.

The deals also maintain enforceable safe staffing ratios, improve protections from workplace violence, and preserve health benefits with no additional out-of-pocket costs for nurses. At Montefiore, the agreement includes commitments to lower nurse-to-patient ratios in several hospital areas and create new nursing positions to reduce patient wait times.

The agreements also address emerging concerns about artificial intelligence in healthcare. Montefiore’s deal specifies that nurses can use their clinical judgment to override AI-generated patient care decisions, while Mount Sinai will notify the union before implementing new technology affecting nursing practices.

Union members will vote on the contracts from Monday through Wednesday. If ratified, nurses will return to work by Saturday, February 14. However, the strike continues at NewYork-Presbyterian, where negotiations are still ongoing over staffing issues.

The strike, which began January 12, has been the longest and largest nursing strike in New York City history. Hospital systems reportedly spent approximately $100 million on temporary replacement nurses during the work stoppage.