A Heavy Lift for Nurses

More than 1,000 city nurses Dec. 21 filed complaints with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission asserting they were victims of gender bias because the city has blocked legislation that would classify their job as physically taxing and entitle them to early retirement.

The New York State Nurses Association argues that the amount of time its members spend lifting and moving patients takes a physical toll that leaves many with back problems. It claims that 40 percent of Nurses sustain serious back injuries during their careers, and that this is evidenced by an average retirement age of 49 for Nurses in the state.

The union asserts that only because the profession is female-dominated has it had difficulty getting legislation approved that would give them the same physically taxing status that is afforded to other city workers whose jobs require heavy lifting on a frequent basis.

It is no surprise that the Bloomberg administration has opposed such a bill; Mayors generally have taken that stance on pension improvements, even if the legislation would not increase the city's costs. What is surprising is that NYSNA has been unable to get the City Council to approve a home-rule resolution, which is necessary before the State Legislature can consider the bill.

Council Speaker Christine Quinn has been reluctant to buck Mr. Bloomberg on legislation. But she is also sensitive enough to gender discrimination that we would expect her to carefully consider whether it is embodied in the lack of a bill offering the Nurses some relief.