Senate Hearing on Safe Staffing Law a Huge Success!
Watch UFCW 3000 member Kelli Johnson, Providence Everett ER nurse, speak to state senators about the importance of safe staffing standards.
This week UFCW 3000 members and our allies at SEIU Healthcare 1199NW and WSNA, along with community supporters, made our presence known at the State Capitol during a state senate hearing on Safe Staffing bill SB 5236. Health care workers testified during the committee hearing and met with lawmakers to ensure they know how desperate the staffing crisis is—and how important it is to pass statewide safe staffing standards now.
“Less than one year ago I provided testimony on House Bill 1868 hoping the state would pass a law ensuring nurses and patients have a safe healthcare environment. Instead, staffing got worse,” said UFCW 3000 member and Providence Everett emergency RN Kelli Johnson to the senate committee. “The shortage is not nurses, the shortage is safe work environments. No amount of money can keep nurses repeatedly experiencing moral injury and burnout, two of the top three reasons nurses leave the profession.”
We are not alone: Firefighters, mental health advocates, rare disease patient advocates, and others also testified in support. And more than 2,000 people signed in “Pro” in support of the bill, more than twice as many as those opposed!