Nurses Threaten Strike At St. Charles Hospital In Port Jefferson

PORT JEFFERSON, NY — Nurses at St. Charles Hospital in Port Jefferson delivered a strike notice to hospital executives, New York State Nurses' Association officials said Tuesday afternoon.

Dozens of nurses marched to St. Charles Hospital President James O’Conner’s office to notify the hospital that they will strike beginning Monday, July 13, unless management negotiates a fair contract that delivers safe staffing and fair wages, according to officials.

Patch has reached out to hospital officials.

The nurses announced on June 12 that a near-unanimous 99.7 percent of nurses voted to authorize a strike, after nurses bargaining for months with "enforceable safe staffing has been the key sticking point in negotiations," they stated in a news release.

Hospital administrators "continue to frequently understaff nurses, even after nurses filed hundreds of complaints to enforce the safe staffing standards in their contract, a state Department of Health investigation found nearly 200 violations of the safe staffing law, and the hospital signed an agreement committing to hire and staff more nurses," the release stated.

In May, nurses compiled 244 unresolved staffing complaint, which is the most complaints of any month in the 18 months since the state began its investigation, the nurses union said.

"St. Charles hospital executives are flouting New York’s safe staffing law, the staffing standards in the nurses’ contract, and putting patient safety at risk," they stated.

"With safety conditions seemingly deteriorating instead of improving, nurses are prioritizing a contract that helps them hold the hospital accountable for safe staffing to protect safe patient care."

President of NYSNA’s local bargaining unit at St. Charles Hospital and intensive care nurse Rob Barone, RN, said: “Nurses need strong staffing enforcement in our contract to hold our hospital accountable. Hospital management promises safer staffing and fails to deliver time after time. Our nurses, patients and community deserve better.”

Nurses also allege St. Charles' management is treating them unfairly and NYSNA has filed an unfair labor practice charge against the hospital for refusing to release the corrective actions they will take to resolve the staffing violations that DOH found, and trying to silence nurses’ voice at work, according to the association.

The nurses are among around 1,000 Catholic Health nurses at three hospitals currently negotiating contracts.