Take action to protect nurses, patient safety

Tell your legislators to support uninterrupted-break bills, oppose industry ‘alternative’

UPDATE (Feb. 12, 2019) — The labor-supported bills guaranteeing uninterrupted breaks for nurses and healthcare workers (HB 1155 and SB 5190) are both scheduled for public hearings on Wednesday, Feb. 13 at 3:30 p.m. in their respective houses’ fiscal committees. SB 5344, the industry-supported “alternative” that that would roll back rest-break protections that exist under current law, is now scheduled to be heard this Friday, Feb. 15 at 8 a.m. in the Senate Health & Long Term Care Committee. So please contact your state legislators today!

OLYMPIA (Feb. 5, 2019) — Our state nursing unions have been working for a decade on legislation that would ensure nurses and other frontline health care workers receive uninterrupted breaks – and that would close a dangerous loophole in the mandatory overtime law. Those companion bills, HB 1155 and SB 5190, have already been approved by policy committees in the House and Senate.

But in an effort to derail these bills, an industry-backed “alternative” has been introduced that would undermine worker and patient safety. SB 5344 adds language about rest breaks that simply maintains the status quo. Meanwhile, other language in this bill rolls back worker protections that exist under current law and sets a maximum working week for nurses at 60 hours!

TAKE A STAND — Please tell your Washington state legislators to protect patient safety by supporting HB 1155 and SB 5190, and by opposing SB 5344. Click here to send that message.

Nurses are our lifelines when a loved one is in the hospital. Let’s show up for nurses now, when they need us most, to ensure they get the rest they deserve. Patient safety depends on it.

Please take action today.