RUMC reaches tentative deal with union to avoid nurses strike on Monday

Jan. 5—STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — A pending nurses strike at Richmond University Medical Center (RUMC) in West Brighton may be averted if a tentative agreement between the nurses' union and hospital officials receive enough votes.

The New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA) has been individually negotiating with eight hospitals in the city for "safe-staffing" and increased wages for nurses.

"We are bargaining to improve patient care. We want safe staffing — in reality, not just on paper," said NYSNA President Nancy Hagans during a press briefing on Thursday.

"We need fair wages that will help recruit and retain enough nurses to deliver quality care to every patient, regardless of their zip code. ... Nurses are the backbone of the hospital, and we'll do whatever it takes to advocate for patients. We cannot continue to watch as conditions deteriorate, and more nurses are leaving the bedside, the profession and New York hospitals. Let's get a fair contract because the clock is ticking."

A tentative agreement was reached last night between RUMC and the New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA), which represents 560 nurses who work at the hospital. Voting on the agreement for the nurses is open until Monday night.

The agreement follows those reached with other New York medical facilities, including Maimonides Medical Center in Brooklyn and New York-Presbyterian Hospital in Manhattan, which allow for improved staffing ratios and wage increases.

"We are very excited that these hospitals settled agreements that make major gains on safe staffing and wages, following the NewYork-Presbyterian pattern of three-year contracts with annual raises of 7,6, and 5%, and nurses at all of these hospitals fought off management's proposed cuts to healthcare," said Hagans. "We hope these agreements set a new higher standard for Brooklyn hospitals and for New York City's safety-net hospitals."

In reaction to the tentative agreement, RUMC released the following statement:

"As we have said throughout these negotiations, we appreciate all of our nurses at Richmond University Medical Center and thank them for the high quality, compassionate care they provide to each of our patients."

"This agreement is a solid investment for our hospital and recognizes our exceptional team of nursing professionals who are the cornerstone of our institution as evidenced by their great work caring for our community day in and day out. It also insures that our patients continue to have uninterrupted access to Richmond University Medical Center's high quality healthcare services and state-of-the-art facilities, including our new world class Emergency Trauma Department slated to open shortly."

NYSNA was planning to strike at several medical facilities on Monday, Jan. 9, the organization said.

Hagans said on Wednesday that 16,000 NYSNA nurses at eight new york hospitals, including RUMC, were ready to strike next week. The union had delivered a 10-day notice of the strike on Dec. 30.

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