Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and Mayor Zohran Mamdani joined thousands of nurses on the picket line Tuesday as the largest nurses strike in New York City history stretched into its ninth day. 

Roughly 15,000 nurses unionized under the New York State Nurses Association went on strike at multiple campuses operated by three private, nonprofit hospital systems — Mount Sinai, Montefiore and NewYork-Presbyterian — on Jan. 12.

The demonstrators continued picketing outside the hospitals through the holiday weekend, demanding safe staffing levels, protections from workplace violence, and no cuts to health care benefits.

In remarks to the crowd, Sanders framed the strike as a fight against corporate greed in health care.

“The people of this country are sick and tired of the greed in the health care industry,” he said, pointing to high salaries for hospital executives. “We owe our nurses a profound debt of gratitude for their dedication to our health.”

Mamdani echoed Sanders’ sentiment, saying the strike was "about recognizing the worth of each and every nurse in this city."

"A strike is an act of last resort," he said. "What workers want is to be back at work, and we call on every side to return to the negotiating table.”

Nurses have said the strike is taking a personal toll. Many have gone more than a week without paychecks, and some have lost health insurance coverage.

“I have doctor’s appointments that are stacked, and I have no health insurance,” said Cynthia Campbell, a Mount Sinai Morningside nurse recovering from cancer.

Hospital systems say they want nurses back at work, but blame the union for the stalemate.

Montefiore said it cannot make progress unless the union retreats from what it has described as “reckless and dangerous $3.6 billion demands.” Mount Sinai’s chief executive officer told staff that a near-term agreement is unlikely.

Union negotiators dispute that characterization.

“They basically stonewalled us, presented us with nothing, and we left with nothing,” said Jonathan Hunter, a negotiator for Mount Sinai nurses.

Negotiations have been sporadic since the strike began.

Contract talks did not continue over the weekend, and while NewYork-Presbyterian returned to the negotiating table last Thursday with the help of a mediator, the sides failed to move closer to an agreement.

Mount Sinai talks on Friday also ended without progress, and it remains unclear when discussions with Montefiore will resume.

City leaders have urged both sides to return to negotiations.

Hospitals have brought in temporary and agency nurses to remain operational. Mount Sinai said it has extended contracts for agency nurses and is onboarding additional staff to restore scheduled surgical volumes.

With no end to the strike in sight, nurses say they will remain on the picket line until a deal is reached.