CWA Standing with Workers in Strike in NYC and Pittsburgh

Victory for NYSNA nurses!

At 6am on Monday, January 9th, over 7,000 nurses at four facilities in New York City went on strike. The workers, members of the New York State Nurses Association, had very clear demands: SAFE STAFFING NOW!

Like our own CWA Local 1133 members who struck for 40 days in 2021 at Mercy Hospital in Buffalo, NYSNA members fought for a contract that included not just fair salaries that would better equip the hospitals to recruit and retain stuff, but enforceable staffing ratios. Severe understaffing in healthcare centers has been a growing issue throughout the country, with workers frequently being forced to work long hours, skip meals and breaks, in order to care for far more patients than they safely should be.

CWA members walked the picket lines alongside the striking workers on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, with dozens - including members of Locals 1101, 1103, 1109, and 1101-1105 Retirees - joining a massive rally at Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx on Wednesday.

“I commend you for your bravery; every CWA member commends you for your bravery,” said Billy Gallagher, CWA District 1 Assistant to the Vice President, speaking at the rally. “I’m here to tell you that we will stand with you in solidarity every single day until you get a fair contract. CWA represents over 10,000 healthcare workers, and we know what you know: Safe staffing saves lives!”

“We will stand with you - Local 1101 and CWA - to tell Monte to put safety over profits!” said Keith Purce, President of CWA Local 1101. “New York City is a union town, and we will stand together. Because when you’re in a union, you never walk alone.”

Early on Thursday morning, January 12th, NYSNA came to a tentative agreement with the employers at both striking facilities, Montefiore Bronx and Mount Sinai Hospital, including a huge victory for concrete enforceable safe staffing ratios in both deals.

Read more about the victory here.

Standing with Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Workers

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette workers, members CWA District 2-13, have been on strike since late last year over the illegal, unilateral cuts to their healthcare made by the paper’s millionaire ownership.

Since the strike began, workers have fought for a fair resolution. CWA members launched a petition demanding cable-satellite network C-SPAN remove Allan Black, chairman of the Post-Gazette’s parent company Block Communications, from C-SPAN’s Board of Directors, while the CWA Executive Board sent a letter to C-SPAN demanding the same.

In late December, CWA Local 1168 members traveled from Buffalo to join the picket lines and rally alongside the striking workers demanding a fair contract.