Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
NYC public hospital docs agree to postpone strike as bargaining resumes
By
Caroline Lewis
Published Jan 7, 2025
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
Zoirusha at English Wikipedia, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
By
Caroline Lewis
Published Jan 7, 2025
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Doctors at four of New York City’s public hospitals agreed to postpone a planned strike after resuming negotiations over a new contract Tuesday, this time with a mediator.
The doctors, who are unionized with the Doctors Council SEIU, originally planned to walk off the job on Monday if contract talks continued to stall. They agreed to postpone the action until Jan. 21, with the intention to call it off if an agreement is reached before then. The doctors said they are fighting for better pay and benefits to address understaffing at their hospitals.
“Doctors Council members will do whatever it takes to win a strong contract that allows us to provide the highest quality of care to our patients,” Dr. Frances Quee, the Doctors Council president, said in a statement.
But, she cautioned, “If our employers are not willing to reach an agreement that meets the needs of frontline doctors and the communities we serve, we are prepared to go on strike.”
The doctors work at Queens Hospital Center in Jamaica, Jacobi Medical Center in the Bronx, North Central Bronx Hospital and Coney Island’s South Brooklyn Health. All are NYC Health and Hospitals facilities and the doctors’ salaries are paid by the city. But they are employed by private affiliates of the hospital system: Mount Sinai Health System and the Physician Affiliate Group of New York.
In a letter last week, Mayor Eric Adams urged the Doctors Council and the two private employers to avoid a strike and suggested they resume talks with a mediator present. Adams asked that the doctors continue working for at least 60 days while talks continue in order to serve patients “during these critical winter months.”
Quee pointed out in her statement on Tuesday that the doctors have already been at the bargaining table for over a year.
“We remain committed to making sure the parties remain at the bargaining table to resolve their issues," Liz Garcia, a spokesperson for the mayor, said Tuesday.
Adams also offered to have Renee Campion, the commissioner of the city’s Office of Labor Relations, try to help resolve the contract dispute, even though the Office of Labor Relations is not a party to the negotiations.
The City Council will hold a hearing on the potential strike on Friday.
Tagged
new york city
economy
Health and Science
Caroline Lewis
Caroline Lewis is on the health care beat for WNYC and Gothamist. She has covered COVID, a nurses' strike, the overdose crisis and New York’s marijuana legalization effort, and spent a year investigating patients' medical bills. She always wants to hear about how everyday New Yorkers experience the health system. Got a tip? Email [email protected].
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
NYC tow companies busted for ripping off drivers must give $67K in refunds, city says
Mayor Mamdani has expanded enforcement on towing scams, but the unlicensed towing industry remains largely unregulated.
By
Liam Quigley
Published Oct 2, 2026 at 4:47 p.m. ET
Off-duty NYPD officer stabbed in the Bronx, police say
Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Commissioner Jessica Tisch visited the officer in the hospital.
By
Ryan Kost
News
Off-duty NYPD officer stabbed in the Bronx, police say
Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Commissioner Jessica Tisch visited the officer in the hospital.
By
Ryan Kost
DOC negligence factored in death at Rikers' Bellevue hospital outpost, jail officials say
By
Brittany Kriegstein
Conductor on NYC subway that dragged man to death may have skipped safety check, source says
By
Stephen Nessen
NYPD still searching for man who threw burning substance on victim in East Harlem
By
Ryan Kost
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .