LD1645 - Riverview

(2016)

An Act To Address Employee Recruitment and Retention Issues at State Mental Health Institutions

Sponsored by Sponsored by: Sen. Roger Katz (R - Kennebec)

What is the bill?

Direct care workers at Maine’s mental health hospitals - Riverview and Dorothea Dix Pscyhiatric Centers – have been struggling in recent years due to severe understaffing. Workers were frequently being forced to work mandated overtime shifts to cover for staff shortages. The work they do is dangerous and difficult, and being understaffed was unsafe for workers and patients alike. AFSCME 1814 & 1825 and MSEA-SEIU 1989 represent the workers at Riverview and Dorothea Dix. One of the biggest barriers to recruiting and retaining staff was low wages. Mental health worker pay started at less than $12 an hour. Staff turnover was high, which negatively impacted the care they were able to provide their patients. Senator Roger Katz and other legislators heard from workers speaking up on this issue and submitted a bill to increase wages for front line staff including mental health workers and nurses. Increasing wages for mental health workers, nurses, and other direct care staff at Riverview and Dorothea Dix means they’ll be able to better compete for and keep good staff. LD 1645 passed both the House and Senate with strong bipartisan majorities, but was vetoed by Governor LePage. Both chambers overrode the veto and LD 1645 became law, giving these workers well deserved raises. Since implemented, workers at Riverview have seen a decrease in mandated overtime shifts, better staffing levels, and increased morale. Two roll call votes in the House were key in the passage of this important bill. We are scoring both the initial roll call as well as the roll call vote to override the veto.

What happened?

Passed Into Law

Votes