On this Labor Day, 1,700 nurses in New Brunswick remain on strike, now without healthcare coverage.

They lost their healthcare coverage on Friday after being on strike at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital for nearly a month.

They are now required to pay for insurance out of pocket using COBRA coverage, which will cost anywhere from $700 to $2,500 per month.

The union has called the discontinuation of healthcare coverage "cruel and unnecessary," stating that the hospital's refusal to negotiate in good faith unnecessarily prolongs the labor dispute. The union also urges hospital management to join them at the bargaining table to address urgent concerns, including adequate staffing to match the complexity of care required.

Meanwhile, the hospital asserts that they informed nurses in July that they would have to enroll in COBRA if the strike was not settled by September 1. They continue to urge the union to consider potential hardships to nurses and their families if negotiations remain unproductive.