Strikes Drag Down Job Growth, Forcing Hospital CEOs to Confront Workforce Tensions
By Jay Asser
Healthcare employment declined in February, marking a rare reversal for an industry that has consistently driven job growth in recent years, according to new data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The agency reported that healthcare lost 28,000 jobs last month, largely reflecting worker strike activity, including a sharp decline of 37,400 jobs at physicians’ offices. The slowdown stands out because healthcare has been one of the most stable sources of employment gains in the economy, adding 36,000 jobs per month in the previous year before the February pullback.
The start of 2026 has put healthcare labor tensions in the national spotlight, with tens of thousands of clinicians walking off the job in disputes over staffing, wages, and working conditions. Over the course of roughly four weeks across January and February, around 31,000 nurses and healthcare professionals went on strike at Kaiser Permanente facilities across California and Hawaii.
At the same time, about 15,000 nurses at major hospitals in New York City went on strike, demanding safer staffing levels and improvements to workplace conditions. The 41-day walkout involved Mount Sinai, Montefiore, and New York Presbyterian, resulting in the largest nurse strike in New York City history.
How CEOs are responding
The best way to avoid these disruptions is to address workforce tensions before they reach a breaking point.
In a recent interview with HealthLeaders, Alison Flynn Gaffney, CEO of Banner – University Medical Center Tucson and Banner – University Medical Center South, said decision-makers need to rethink how they engage employees and support frontline teams. She emphasized that executives must prioritize attunement with employee needs and aspirations, and equip managers to coach staff through challenges in real time rather than waiting for issues to escalate.
That approach, she highlighted, requires leaders to be more present with their workforce and to ask simple but direct questions that help employees identify solutions.
“We’re addressing issues either before they happen, as they happen, and if something needs a more serious focus, we’re also humble enough to say, we didn’t get that right and we commit to getting it right with you in collaboration,” Flynn Gaffney said. “So our one team culture is really paramount. It’s not a hashtag. It’s not an initiative. It’s not a campaign. It’s who we are. It’s how we show up for one another each and every day.”
“In my experience over my career, over and over, the answers do not exist at the top of the organization,” Quiroga says. “The answers exist closer to the problem.”
He added: “The top has to bring that clarity. The top has to bring the direction, the resources, and then don’t get into the how. Allow [your teams] to figure out the how and they often do.”
The messages from Flynn Gaffney and Quiroga serve as examples of how hospital CEOs are approaching workforce strategy by prioritizing culture and engagement.
The February employment drop may prove temporary if strike activity subsides, but the data is a reminder that workforce challenges will continue to require constant attention and consideration.
Jay Asser is the CEO editor for HealthLeaders.