**MEDIA ADVISORY FOR WEDNESDAY, MARCH 13 AT 12 PM NOON**
Staten Island University Hospital Nurses to Announce Strike Vote Results
NYSNA members say that since Northwell took over their hospital, the giant healthcare conglomerate has made changes that could compromise patient care, focusing more on corporate expansion than on caring for Staten Island
Below-market pay and frequent understaffing are forcing nurses to seek work away from their Staten Island community
Contact: Eliza Bates | press@nysna.org| 646-285-8491
Kristi Barnes | press@nysna.org| 646-853-4489
Staten Island, N.Y.– On Wednesday, March 13, Staten Island University Hospital (SIUH)/ Northwell nurses, who are members of the New York State Nurses Association, will hold a speak-out in front of the hospital to announce the results of their strike vote. After months of contract negotiations, nurses at SIUH voted on whether to strike at the Northwell-owned facility.
Nurses say that they want to stay in Staten Island to care for their community, but they’re being forced to seek work off the island because of below-market pay at SIUH and frequent understaffing that makes it impossible to provide the level of care their patients deserve. They say that Northwell is asking them to do more with less, making changes that could compromise patient care while shelling out for expensive ad campaigns and spending billions on corporate expansion. Northwell recently announced a $19.2 billion merger with Nuvance Health but eliminated pharmacists on the hospital floors of SIUH, forcing nurses away from patient bedsides for sometimes an hour or more to seek out urgently needed medications.
Nurses are mobilizing for a fair union contract that protects care for Staten Island patients and helps recruit and retain enough nurses at the bedside.
WHO: NYSNA nurses at Staten Island University Hospital and allies, including Vinny Alvarez from the Central Labor Council
WHAT: Speakout to announce strike vote results and to demand a fair contract that protects care for Staten Island patients
WHEN: Wednesday, March 13 at 12 PM noon
WHERE: Staten Island University Hospital
475 Seaview Ave, Corner of Seaview and Mason
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The New York State Nurses Association represents more than 42,000 members in New York State. We are New York’s largest union and professional association for registered nurses. NYSNA is an affiliate of National Nurses United, AFL-CIO, the country's largest and fastest-growing union and professional association of registered nurses, with more than 225,000 members nationwide.
