AUGUSTA - In a vote last month on bill proposals for the upcoming session, members of the Legislative Council approved a bill sponsored by Rep. Seth Berry, D-Bowdoinham, to raise wages for employees at the Riverview Psychiatric Center.
The bill, An Act To Support Employees of the Riverview Psychiatric Center and Riverview Psychiatric Center Outpatient Services, would require a wage increase of $3 per hour for all employees of the center, which offers treatment, education and research for individuals with serious, persistent mental illness, as well as co-occurring substance use disorders.
"Employees of the Riverview Psychiatric Center perform a critical service for our state, and the importance of their work has only been made more evident as the pandemic has exacerbated Mainers' mental health conditions," said Berry. "This wage increase is long overdue."
During even-numbered years, the Legislature generally limits bill submissions to those that address emergencies and other pressing situations. The Legislative Council, which is made up of each party's leaders in the Maine House and Senate, decides which bills fit the criteria. This year, the Legislative Council approved only 107 bills out of the 330 proposed.
"Our state hospitals are routinely understaffed, and employees are significantly underpaid," said Jeff McCabe, Political and Legislative Director for the Maine Service Employees Association. "Recruitment and retention have been a struggle long before the pandemic. Rep. Berry's bill provides a solution to immediately address this."
Berry's bill will be heard when the Legislature meets again in January.
Berry represents House District 55: Bowdoin, Bowdoinham, Swan Island and most of Richmond. He previously served from 2006-2014, the final two years as House majority leader, and returned to the House in 2016.
Contact:
Jackie Merrill [Berry], c. 812-1111