New York, New York - Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Senator Bernie Sanders joined New York City nurses on the picket line on Tuesday as their strike entered its ninth day.

"It is an honor and a privilege to stand with the nurses of New York City this morning," Sanders told the crowd outside the Mount Sinai West hospital in Manhattan.

"In a broken and dysfunctional healthcare system, the nurses are the people who keep us alive and who nurture us."

Last week, the New York State Nurses Association announced that some 15,000 nurses at the Mount Sinai, Montefiore, and NewYork-Presbyterian hospital systems were going on strike after months of bargaining for a new contract.

The union is calling for safe staffing levels in hospitals, workplace violence protections, guaranteed benefits for nurses, and protections against the use of AI in healthcare.

"Week 2 of the largest nurses strike in NYC history. Sen. Sanders and I are proud to stand with nurses and union leaders as they fight for the patient ratios, fair contract, and dignity that they deserve," Mamdani posted on X.

"Proud to stand with Mayor Mamdani and the nurses of New York City to demand decent patient ratios and an end to the greed of the hospital CEO's," Sanders wrote.

The hospitals have brought in temporary and agency nurses during the strike. With no deal in sight, nurses have said they will remain on the picket line until an agreement is reached.