Workers at Butler Hospital began chanting, cheering, and trudging in the mud out front of the psychiatric hospital at 6 a.m. Thursday, and remained on strike by the end of the day.
Members of the union’s bargaining committee say the workers are fighting for higher wages across the board and better staffing. They began day one of their strike after negotiations over a new contract stalled with the company that runs the hospital.
“Far too many employees are not able to pay their bills and put food on their table for their families,” said K-Lee Butler, a secretary for the hospital’s alcohol and drug detoxification unit.
Butler says she and her own family struggle on her salary of $21.34 per hour.
“I’m a single mother of four. I have expenses. I have kids in college, so it just becomes a burden,” she said.
Butler said her starting salary was about $2 less per hour than it is now, and that she’s worked for the hospital for four years. She said she’d be happy just going up a few more dollars to $25 per hour.
“We’re not asking for much. We’re not asking to be millionaires. We’re just asking for sustainable wages so we can feed our families and live,” said Butler.
Her co-worker, mental health worker Kevin Kelley, says he makes about $23 per hour and has seven years of experience. Some Butler staff members make as low as $15.53 per hour. Kelley says he loves his job but feels undervalued at his level of pay.
Kelley says he is even more concerned about the number of injuries workers have sustained at the hospital. Sometimes, when patients are having acute psychotic episodes, multiple employees are needed to contain them, which can result in employee injuries. He estimates injuries have doubled in the past year and says hiring is down.
“We’re trying to keep everybody safe. And, you know, it’s a constant battle of cutting staff,” he said. “We just want some consistency and to be able to have a safe place for us to work at, a safe place for patients to come.”
The workers say they’ll keep negotiating until their demands are met.
Raina Smith, a spokesperson for Care New England, the company that runs Butler Hospital, said the hospital does not believe the strike is necessary for bargaining, and that the hospital is already planning to address these workers’ concerns.
“Workplace safety and fair compensation are priorities we take seriously. That’s why we’ve proposed meaningful improvements aimed at addressing both,” she said.
