Nurse staffing is at crisis levels nationwide, and one leading national health care union says it’s serious about legislation to address it. On Feb. 24, American Federation of Teachers (AFT) announced it will spend half a million dollars on a radio, Pandora, Facebook and Instagram ad buy asking the public to put pressure on policymakers.
Two Oregon AFT affiliates—Oregon Federation of Nurses and Healthcare Professionals and the Oregon Nurses Association—are asking state legislators to passHouse Bill 2697 to mandate safe staffing standards.
AFT national president Randi Weingarten was in Portland to announce the national campaign, but the event was moved online after Portland’s record snowfall.
An AFT report released in November found that nurses are exhausted, burned out, anxious and leaving the profession in droves.
