UMC Nurses Strike for Third Time Since 2023 Unionization

• UMC nurses went on strike for the third time since contract negotiations began in March 2024. 
• Nurses who went on strike argued for increased wages, better retention, and workplace safety. 
• Nurses who crossed the picket line believe the nursing union demands would bankrupt the hospital, according to local media coverage. 

Nurses at New Orleans’ only Level 1 trauma center went on strike on International Workers’ Day, marking the third strike amid a monthslong contract dispute. 

Local media outlets reported that the University Medical Center nurses still are trying to come to terms on pay, staffing, and safety, despite the fact that progress has been made on a disciplinary policy. 

“We don’t actually get to utilize that until we have a contract in place,” Hailey Dupré, an endoscopy nurse, told Verite News. “So while it still feels huge, we need to solidify our contract to actually be able to utilize that huge win.” 

The nurses, according to WWNO, are asking for a “transparent wage scale based on experience,” in addition to better safety measures and increased retention. 

Hospital leadership said that operations would not be disrupted during the strike, as they planned to use contract nurses to cover shifts. 

UMC Nurses: Strike One, Strike Two… 

Contract negotiations began in March 2024, but nurses voted to unionize the previous December. National Nurses United has previously said that the UMC nurses’ vote was the largest National Labor Relations board election in Louisiana in nearly 30 years. 

The second strike occurred in February during Super Bowl weekend in New Orleans. That move garnered support from the NFL Players Association, which said in a statement on X that the NFLPA stood “in solidarity with LCMC nurses as they fight for their right to collectively bargain and advocate for better patient care.” 

Compounding the February strike was Super Bowl LIX — the first major event in New Orleans since a New Year’s Day terrorist attack in which 14 people died and nearly 60 were injured. 

Hospital leadership has previously stated that strikes have cost the parent health system, LCMC, “about $2 million a day,” largely due to costs of bringing in replacement staff. 

Strike Three

WGNO, a Nexstar broadcast partner, covered the May 1 strike at UMC and spoke to Lauren Waddell, a neurosurgery nurse practitioner. 

“We’re just not satisfied with the progress we’re making thus far. And so that’s how we call it a third strike. I feel thankful and empowered by the turnout we’ve had thus far, the energy we’re feeling today in spite of the weather,” Waddell told the TV station. “I just feel so thankful for everyone that’s out here supporting us. I would like UMC to come to the table with the intention of reaching a fair contract.” 

Another outlet, 4WWL, reported that nurses a split on “both sides of the negotiating table,” with some who did not picket believing the hospital will go bankrupt if it meets the union’s demands.  

The hospital’s managing nonprofit, LCMC, was recently named on the National Council for Occupational Safety and Health’s “Dirty Dozen” list, which identifies employers that have “failed to protect workers on the job, leading to preventable injuries, illnesses, and deaths,” a news release stated. 

However, LCMC announced just one week later that five of its hospitals — UMC was not among them — were recognized with the “highest distinction” for patient safety from the healthcare quality and safety watchdog group Leapfrog. 

The Bottom Line

University Medical Center nurses in New Orleans, Louisiana, went on strike for the third time in more than a year as they try to negotiate a new contract. Nurses unionized in December 2023 but have been working on new terms since March 2024. 

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