'They Deserve Better': Sanders Demands Fair Contract for New Jersey Nurses on Strike

Voicing his support for nearly 2,000 nurses at one of New Jersey's largest hospitals as they approach the third full week of their work stoppage, U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders on Tuesday called for a fair contract for the nurses and condemned their hospital network's use of replacement nurses during the strike instead of negotiating "in good faith."

Unionized nurses who are represented by United Steel Workers Local 4-200 have been on strike since August 4 in protest of stagnant wages and unsafe staffing ratios even as executives at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (RWJUH) are paid millions per year.

The nurses began contract negotiations in April, and three offers by RWJUH failed to provide fair working conditions, the union says. The most recent offer included a 15.6% raise over three years but also would have penalized nurses for taking sick days—putting the health of patients and staff at risk.

The hospital has only hired 150 new nurses since 2022, according to NJ Spotlight News, and the union says staff shortages have left nurses—including those taking care of some of the most vulnerable patients in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit—struggling to provide care.

"We're tired! We're burnt out! We're going and going—all day, every day!" nurse Sue Sienkiewicz toldNJ Spotlight News on August 4. "All shifts. Not getting breaks, because you're too busy to take a break."

In his letter to RWJ Barnabas Health (RWJBH) president and CEO Mark E. Manigan, Sanders also noted that nurses have faced restrictions on their own healthcare plans and are permitted only to use providers within the RWJBH system.

"The hospital has the means and ability to reduce costs and provide affordable healthcare benefits to its workers," said Sanders. "Instead, the hospital continues to see nurses' health costs as another means to profit and has refused to provide a meaningful counteroffer in recent negotiation."

In contract negotiations, nurses at RWJUH were offered a raise of just $1 per hour for on-call shifts only, "which, after adjusting for inflation, would amount to a significant pay cut," said the senator.

"While RWJBH continues to make millions in revenues, the wages for the nurses at RWJUH are not keeping pace with the rising cost of living," he added. "It is absurd for RWJBH to claim it can afford to pay its executives millions, yet is somehow unable to provide its nurses fair raises."

The hospital further proved it has the resources to pay nurses earlier this month when it hired non-union nurses to replace the striking health professionals.

"Let's be clear: If RWJBH can afford to hire these replacement nurses and pay their executives millions each year, they can afford a contract that keeps nurses safe and provides living wages and good benefits," said Sanders. "These workers have been on the frontlines in our fight against Covid-19 and have risked their lives to save patients under challenging conditions. They deserve better."

The senator concluded by calling on Manigan and other officials to return to the bargaining table.