A major victory for hospital caregivers and for patient safety

‘Clean’ rest break bill passes both houses after massive show of support

OLYMPIA (April 25, 2019) — The safety of hospital patients and their frontline caregivers drew national attention in the past week, culminating in hundreds of nurses, medical technicians, and their supporters rallying at the State Capitol on Wednesday — and then celebrating. Legislators in both the state Senate and House passed long-sought legislation later Wednesday that will ensure that nurses and other frontline healthcare workers in Washington state get uninterrupted meal and rest breaks.

Following a Republican senator’s dismissive remarks about nurses’ workloads — suggesting they “probably play cards for a considerable amount of the day” — a flood of emails, mail, and phone calls (and decks of cards) from supporters of hospital workers across the nation hit Olympia. Ultimately, amendments that had previously “blown up” the rest-break bill (SHB 1155) were removed in conference committee.

And a few hours after hundreds bill supporters rallied on the Capitol steps Wednesday morning, The Senate voted 32-16 and the House voted 70-24 to approve the bill with those labor-opposed amendments removed. SHB 1155 now heads to the desk of Gov. Jay Inslee, who expressed his support for the nurses in person at the morning rally and is expected to sign it.

“This is about patient safety,” said Larry Brown, President of the Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO, to the nurses at Wednesday morning’s rally. “We have a lot in common. We’re all members of the union and we’re all some day going to need your help at critical times. I know my family has gone through it this year and last year with my mom who just recently passed. But she would not have had the last year if it had not been for the care she got at St. Joe’s Hospital.”

The three unions for hospital caregivers — UFCW 21, SEIU Healthcare 1199NW, and the Washington State Nurses Association (WSNA) — issued a joint statement thanking legislators, including bill sponsors Sen. Karen Keiser (D-Kent) and Rep. Marcus Riccelli (D-Spokane), for passing the clean bill:

“After nearly a decade of work by thousands of hospital nurses, techs, patients and supporters, Washington is joining many other states, including Oregon and California, in better protecting hospital patients. By guaranteeing rest breaks to nurses and other frontline caregivers during their long shifts, and prohibiting mandatory overtime, Washington hospitals will reduce the chances for medical errors.”

On average, 400,000 patients die each year in the U.S. from avoidable medical errors, according to a study in the Journal of Patient Safety. Medical errors are now the third-leading cause of death in the U.S. after cancer and heart disease. Avoidable medical errors cost an estimated $19.5 billion annually in the U.S., including medical expenses, mortality, and loss of productivity.

The three unions also thanked the WSLC and its affiliated unions, which joined together in strong support of the bill to help ensure its passage. Labor leaders and lobbyists (some of whom are pictured at right) from multiple unions — from the building trades to the firefighters — backed the nurses’ cause in the halls of the Capitol. And this week, a remarkable collection of WSLC affiliates and community organizations sent legislators a letter urging passage of SHB 1155 without harmful amendments that limit work hours and exempt certain hospitals.

“Please do the right thing, and pass a healthcare worker break and overtime bill that honors and respects the workers who do so much for the rest of us,” the letter reads. “Reject efforts to amend the bill that treats one set of workers differently than their coworkers, and ensure that all healthcare workers, in all hospitals – rural and urban – are treated with dignity and respect.”

The letter was signed by: