Nurse strikes in the bag and on the way in 2026
As of the end of June, U.S. nurses have staged at least eight strikes in 2026. Six or so more are planned, and one continues unsettled from 2025.
The website Nurse.org posted a rundown of the actions June 27.
Meanwhile the American Nurses Association has long suggested that it’s no wonder protests and pickets have become annual events outside hospitals around the U.S.
Static pay despite ever-heavier workloads is only one source of job dissatisfaction among several for U.S. nurses, the union maintains.
Other common complaints include unsafe nurse-to-patient ratios and the hazards of the profession.
According to the ANA and the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the dangers include high injury/illness rates—nearly double the average of all other occupations combined—and workplace violence, which affects roughly five times more nurses than the average for all other workers.
More vocal, no less passionate
The Nurse.org strike roundup cites a survey it conducted in 2023. This revealed that 91% of nurses believe the nursing shortage is getting worse.
It also confirmed that burnout, poor working conditions and inadequate pay are the primary causes.
In addition, 79% of nurses said their units are inadequately staffed and 71% said improving staffing ratios would have the greatest impact on the nursing shortage.
“Nurses are becoming more vocal about these feelings and experiences and are choosing to take action through striking,” Nurse.org contributor Brandy Pinkerton, RN, writes.
Among the upcoming strikes Pinkerton lists is a walkout slated for July 8 in Boston by around 4,500 nurses and aides at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Mass General Brigham (MGB) Home Care.
“MGB executives are forcing Brigham nurses to strike by choosing corporate profits over patient care,” says union negotiator Kelly Morgan, RN, in a news release posted by the Massachusetts Nurses Association. “MGB has spent years disrespecting nurses and ignoring our safety concerns. We are standing up for our patients, our profession and the future of care at the Brigham.”
Hospital says it’s braced and ready
In response, an MGB spokesperson tells the Boston Globe the institution is “fully prepared to continue providing high-quality patient care throughout a work stoppage.”
The spokesperson, Jessica Pastore, says MGB has previously participated in 21 negotiating sessions with the union, including with a federal mediator.
Nurse.org reports other institutions soon to be picketed include Jefferson Einstein Philadelphia Hospital, Oregon Health & Science University and others.
A 750-nurse walkout at Henry Ford Genesys Hospital in Michigan started last September and continues on today.
Dave P. has worked in journalism, marketing and public relations for more than 30 years, frequently concentrating on hospitals, healthcare technology and Catholic communications. He has also specialized in fundraising communications, ghostwriting for CEOs of local, national and global charities, nonprofits and foundations.