St. Charles, St. Catherine of Siena RNs vote to authorize strike

Nurses from two Catholic Health Services hospitals in Suffolk County have voted to authorize strikes, New York’s largest union for registered nurses said.

Nurses at St. Catherine of Siena Medical Center in Smithtown and St. Charles Hospital in Port Jefferson — working under expired contracts — approved strike authorizations, according to a Monday news release from the New York State Nurses Association, which said it represents more than 40,000 members in New York.

The registered nurses are asking for a contract that enforces adequate staffing for patient care and health benefits and pay needed to help recruit and retain skilled health care workers at the hospitals, according to the release.

Registered nurses have presented contract proposals to management and negotiations continue, the release said.

No specific strike dates have been determined.

A spokeswoman for Catholic Health Services said in a statement the organization has not received a notice to strike and that dates have been scheduled to continue negotiations.

She said management is working diligently to resolve all issues.

“We look forward to a mutually satisfactory collective bargaining agreement which rewards our nurses and meets the needs of our hospitals,” the statement said.