**MEDIA ADVISORY**
Workers at four facilities across the Southland plan to walk out to demand safe staffing, an end to safety violations and the dumping of psychiatric patients.
WHEN:
Thursday October 12th, 10:00AM
WHERE:
2910 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90057 (Verdia Daniels Conference Room)
WHO:
Long-term care workers (members of SEIU 2015); Supporters and community allies (CLUE, Chirla, LAANE, SEIU USWW), including Assemblymember Miguel Santiago, City of Alhambra Councilmember Sasha Renee Perez, City of Huntington Park Councilmember Karina Macias, Commissioner Phulante Riddle, City of Bell Gardens Councilmember Jorgel Chavez, Maya Douglas (Assemblymember Mike Gipson’s District Director), and LACDP Chair Mark Gonzalez.
WHAT:
Nursing home workers across four Rockport/Brius facilities will be joined by numerous elected officials and community allies in a press conference to announce a 3-day unfair labor practice strike planned for next week. Workers will share their stories and address the following issues that have continued to plague their workplaces: the understaffing crisis plaguing nursing home facilities, health and safety violations, and the overflow of psych patients that employees aren’t trained to care for, which has resulted in incidences of workplace violence.
WHY:
Low wages and poor working conditions have led to alarming turnover rates in these facilities, resulting in severe ongoing staffing shortages. According to allegations made in one lawsuit, Brius, which is one of the largest corporate nursing home operators in California, keeps its facilities purposefully understaffed to maximize profits. Since 2017, California’s Department of Health has issued almost a dozen health citations against Brius-owned facilities, ranging from broken sewage systems to improper infection protocol.
This past summer, CalMatters reported that Rockport/Brius is slipping through a legal loophole to get dozens of nursing homes licensed just before state reforms take effect intended to provide improved oversight.
Press Contacts:
DKC News
SEIU@dkcnews.com
On Site Contacts:
Terry Carter
Terryc@seiu2015.org
(805) 312-0024