Butler Hospital, union workers must end prolonged strike Gerald Tarnoff

Guest columnist

Butler Hospital staff and members of the Service Employees International Union 1199NE, including mental health workers, nurses, clerical staff, dietary workers, housekeeping and social workers, have been on strike since May 15, the longest hospital strike in the history of Rhode Island, with no end in sight.

For almost three months, many patients with symptoms severe enough to require a psychiatric hospitalization, have been deprived of their needed medical care.

This strike is occurring at a time when Rhode Island and the nation are in a mental health crisis. The suicide rate in the United States has steadily increased over the past 20 years and remains a leading cause of death for youth under 25 . In 2021, the U.S. Surgeon General Vivek H. Murthy noted the dramatic