Bill > S0118

This bill creates the Rhode Island Nursing Home Workforce Standards Advisory Board, a 13-member board comprised of representatives from nursing home employers, workers, community organizations, government agencies, and a labor-management training fund, to address workforce and quality of care issues in nursing homes. The board will be overseen by the Department of Labor and Training and tasked with advising the General Assembly on market conditions, wages, benefits, and working conditions in the nursing home industry. Members will serve three-year terms without compensation and will have the power to recommend minimum statewide compensation standards, propose worker training program standards, and help ensure employer compliance with those standards. The bill is motivated by findings that workforce quality directly impacts resident care quality, and that consistent operational standards are necessary to attract and retain qualified staff. The board will facilitate data sharing among state health and labor agencies to support its mission, with the ultimate goal of improving the working environment and care quality in nursing homes across Rhode Island. The act will take effect immediately upon passage.

Health and Social Services

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