SEIU leaders on why the union supports Helena Foulkes over Dan McKee

McKee’s record speaks for itself

By Jesse Martin and Victoria Mitchell

On a sunny day in May 2021, a crowd of excited nursing home workers, family members, and advocates gathered on the State House steps. The pandemic was easing; mask-wearing and social distancing were now optional. The workers - wearing scrubs or ‘Raise the Bar’ t-shirts - clustered around a folding table. There, Governor Daniel McKee sat, grinning, as he signed the Nursing Home Staffing and Quality Care Act into law.

It was a great day for nursing home caregivers, residents, and family members. We believed it was the beginning of safer, more dignified care for our loved ones and a commitment that 80% of any Medicaid increases would go toward worker wages. But five years later, the law - once one of Governor McKee’s crowning pandemic achievements - has become all but non-existent by the actions of the Governor himself.

This broken promise by Governor McKee deeply disappointed caregivers and residents who desperately needed the law’s protections. But it is not the only one. That’s why, this Labor Day, as we reflect on workers’ rights, our healthcare system and the economy, we - as leaders of SEIU 1199NE, the state’s largest healthcare union - conclude that the status quo cannot continue. We have had enough of McKee’s empty promises and have voted instead to endorse Helena Foulkes for Governor.

A recent article in the Providence Journal quotes McKee’s campaign spokesperson as saying, “Governor McKee’s record on labor and healthcare speaks for itself.” We could not agree more. Here are a few reasons why:

Six months after McKee signed the nursing home staffing law, he signed the first moratorium delaying enforcement, followed by a succession of executive orders suspending fines, the only enforcement mechanism to hold for-profit nursing home owners accountable. Finally, in December 2023, he suspended the law altogether.

Nursing home workers and allies then advocated for another way to improve quality care: the Nursing Home Workforce Standards Board, an advisory committee the General Assembly passed unanimously in June 2024. Less than two weeks later, McKee vetoed the legislation, stating it didn’t generate “comprehensive solutions.”

But nursing home residents cannot wait for a legislative magic bullet. The need for intervention is urgent, real, and life-threatening. Rhode Island currently ranks fourth in the nation for serious nursing home deficiencies and 48th for preparedness to meet the needs of its aging population.

To add insult to injury, in the following fiscal year 2025 budget, McKee issued $70 million in Medicaid increases that failed to include any requirement that the money go toward direct care, a direct violation of the law.

Which brings us to our historic Butler strike, launched on May 15, 2025, to confront a serious workplace violence epidemic. McKee would like to claim credit for its conclusion over three months later, but the truth is his only contribution was one letter in May urging parties to return to bargaining. He never once visited the picket line to hear workers’ stories or offer encouragement. What’s more, he proposed cutting $25 million in hospital funding in 2025, despite looming federal cuts.

After all this disappointment, McKee had an opportunity to set things right. Our union helped secure a landmark agreement to amend the nursing home staffing law to aid its implementation on January 1, 2026. We soon learned that McKee never included funding for data tracking, effectively preventing its rollout once again.

Despite claiming that improving healthcare outcomes and economic wellbeing are among his top priorities, McKee has shown repeatedly he will almost always side with special interests over working people.

Rhode Island deserves better. We need a decisive leader who will listen to us and work collaboratively to find real solutions that make the government more responsive to its citizens. Helena Foulkes has shown she has what it takes to be that leader. We are hopeful that, under her leadership, our patients, their families, and our colleagues will finally get the support they deserve.

Authors:

Jesse Martin is Executive Vice-President of SEIU 1199NE, the New England Health Care Employees Union, and President of the Rhode Island SEIU State Council. SEIU 1199NE represents more than 32,000 healthcare and service workers across Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Southeastern Massachusetts, including workers in hospitals, nursing homes, group homes, home care, state healthcare facilities, and other health and human service settings.

Victoria Mitchell, Certified Nursing Assistant - Lincolnwood Rehab
Victoria Mitchell has been a Certified Nursing Assistant at Lincolnwood Rehab in North Providence for 29 years. She is a delegate and member of the Executive Board of SEIU 1199NE, Rhode Island’s largest healthcare union.