Union physicians at four NYC Health + Hospitals in New York City intend to strike onJan. 13.
Doctors Council — Service Employees International Union, which represents almost 1,000 NYC Health physicians, issued a 10-day strike notice to the health system and its affiliates, Physicians Affiliate Group of New York and the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, according to a Jan. 2 news release shared with Becker's.
"While we respect the right to collective action, facing a strike is unfortunate," said Physicians Affiliate Group of New York's board of directors in a Jan. 2 news release shared with Becker's. "We have approached these negotiations with transparency and a genuine commitment to addressing concerns, presenting an offer that includes meaningful enhancements for our doctors and other healthcare providers. Our focus should remain on delivering quality care to the communities we serve."
The strikes will take place at NYC Health + Hospitals/Jacobi, NYC Health + Hospitals/North Central Bronx, NYC Health + Hospitals/Queens and NYC Health + Hospitals/South Brooklyn Health.
More than 2,500 physicians across the system have been working on contract negotiations since September 2023. The union said it seeks to address the rising cost of living, long hours and burnout, alongside recruitment and retention issues within the system
"Without a fair contract, our communities will continue to face a critical shortage of doctors, and patients will ultimately bear the brunt of the system's failure," Joplin Steinweiss, DO, a primary care physician at Jacobi, told Becker's in a union news release.