Nurses from Long Island hospitals picketed in front of Huntington Hospital on June 10, demanding fair contracts and safer staffing practices from the hospital’s parent organization, Northwell Health.
Donning their red New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA) T-shirts and wielding signs stating their mantra, “safe staffing saves lives,” nurses from Huntington Hospital lined the sidewalk to rally for better working conditions. They were joined by nurses from other hospitals across Long Island and representatives from Jobs with Justice, a labor rights organization. The gloomy, overcast weather was no deterrent to the healthcare workers as they marched from 11 a.m. into the rainy afternoon — only stopping to hold a press conference at noon.
“We are very overworked, underpaid, under-respected, and really it goes out to the patients,” said Karen Semonella, a registered nurse for 20 years at Huntington Hospital. “We signed up for this years ago when we went to school, because we have big hearts. We have compassion for people to help them through a time of illness and we can’t do it.”
Huntington nurses claimed that they are burnt out and the hospital’s management board has asked them to take on more patients than they can see, trickling down into insufficient patient care.
“Management is much more concerned with optics than they are with safe patient care,” said Huntington registered nurse Grace Silver. “We are told to get people out of the waiting room and into the ER as quickly as possible, but that doesn’t address the fact that there aren’t enough nurses to care for them.”
Liliana Perez, a registered nurse at Huntington, said that Northwell management is asking nurses to see eight patients during a shift. By state law, nurses are supposed to see six patients in their unit, according to Perez — adding to the trend of nurses being stretched too thin.
New, younger nurses have been calling out of work and even quitting, finding better wages and working conditions at different hospitals, the nurses said. Huntington’s nurse retention rate is “garbage,” according to Silver.
Since joining NYSNA in November 2024, the nurses have been negotiating contracts for competitive wages to retain employees, safer staffing practices, and pension plans. Safe staffing refers to hiring and scheduling enough nurses to meet patient demand and provide adequate care.
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The union gave Northwell Health a deadline of March 31 to meet the nurses’ demands — one that has since come and gone, pushing the nurses to picket.
“We respect our team members’ right to conduct informational picketing. This is not a strike, and we want to assure our patients and the community that normal hospital operations will continue, providing uninterrupted, superior care, which remains our top priority,” said a representative from Huntington Hospital via Northwell Health.
Northwell Health also stated that it is committed to working with NYSNA to negotiate a fair contract that advocates for high-quality patient care.
“Northwell calls itself a healthcare leader,” said Joanne DeAntonio, local NYSNA union president and registered nurse at South Shore University Hospital. “Well, it’s time they stand leading by example, by treating their nurses with fairness, by bargaining in good faith, by giving us the respect we deserve, and coming to the table and meeting face to face.”
The nurses are not just fighting for their own better treatment, but for better conditions for future generations of healthcare professionals. They emphasized that support for new nurses is integral for longer careers at Northwell.
“We are nurses,” DeAntonio added. “We save lives. We are the backbone of this healthcare system. We are also human beings. We deserve safe staffing. We deserve competitive wages. We deserve real benefits.”
Following the rally, Huntington Hospital nurses will meet with members of the hospital board to re-bargain, said Perez. According to Semonella, 65 contract proposals have to be met and concurred upon before the two parties can reach an agreement.
The next steps for Huntington Hospital nurses are to continue negotiations and continue pushing for a new contract, even if that means remaining on the picket line, according to Semonella.
“Northwell, your nurses are running empty,” Semonella said, “And you need to fill up the tank.”
