ALBANY, NEW YORK – Hundreds of healthcare workers represented by Communications Workers of America District 1 (CWA D1), New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA), 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East (1199SEIU), Public Employees Federation (PEF), District Council 37 (DC 37), New York State United Teachers (NYSUT), United Federation of Teachers (UFT), and New York State AFL-CIO (NYS

AFL-CIO), will hold a rally on Monday, May 13 at 11:30 am in front of the Senate lobby to demand swift action from the State and Department of Health (DOH) to address New York’s statewide healthcare crisis through robust enforcement of the 2021 Clinical Staffing Committee law.

Workers will be joined by elected officials, including Assemblymember Amy Paulin and Senator Gustavo Rivera to call for immediate action from the DOH to tackle rampant understaffing across New York hospitals that has jeopardized patient care and safety across the state.

Since the 2021 Clinical Staffing Committee law went into effect in January 2023, thousands of unresolved staffing complaints have been filed on behalf of workers by CWA District 1, NYSNA, 1199SEIU and other unions representing healthcare workers, including over 8,000 complaints in November and 2,500 complaints filed in March, under hospitals’ clinical staffing plans with the Department of Health (DOH) on behalf of healthcare workers across Catholic Health and Kaleida Health in Buffalo.

Chronic staffing issues at hospitals in New York clearly violate provisions of the staffing law meant to increase transparency and hold hospitals accountable to safe staffing standards (as agreed upon in plans

submitted to and approved by the state). While the DOH has conducted some investigations, the outcomes of these investigations remain to be seen and not readily accessible to the public. Unsafe staffing levels remain in hospitals across New York State, risking patient care and being a main driver of the healthcare workforce crisis.

DETAILS:

WHAT: Hospital Healthcare workers rally to call for robust enforcement of safe staffing law by state leaders and DOH

WHO: Union Healthcare workers represented by CWA District 1, New York State Nurses Association, 1199SEIU, Public Employees Federation (PEF), District Council 37 AFSCME, New York State United Teachers, United Federation of Teachers, and the New York State AFL-CIO

WHEN: Monday, May 13, 2024

11:30 AM ET Healthcare Worker Rally

WHERE: 4th Floor, Senate Lobby

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CWA District 1 represents 145,000 workers in 200 CWA local unions in New York, New Jersey, New England, and eastern Canada. CWA members work in telecommunications, health care, higher education, manufacturing, broadcast and cable television, commercial printing and newspapers, state, local, and country government.

The New York State Nurses Association represents more than 42,000 members in New York State. We are New York’s largest union and professional association for registered nurses.

NYSNA is an affiliate of National Nurses United, AFL-CIO, the country’s largest and fastest-growing union and professional association of registered nurses, with more than 225,000

members nationwide.

1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East is the largest and fastest-growing healthcare union in New York and nationwide. We represent over 450,000 caregivers throughout New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Maryland, Florida, and Washington, D.C. Our mission is to achieve quality care and good jobs for all.