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Safety for Workers!

The Marty Smith Law

Marty SmithRemembering Marty Smith1959-2005
Marty, a County Designated Mental Health Professional (CDMHP) at Kitsap Mental Health and a member of SEIU District 1199NW, was killed on Nov. 4, 2005 when he went to provide care for a client in crisis in a private residence.

Gov Gregoire and Yolanda SmithThe Marty Smith bill is now state law! Our bill passed both house of the State Legislature unanimously.  On May 8, 2007, Governor Christine Gregoire signed it into law.

The Marty Smith Act will:
  1. provide annual safety training for all community mental health workers;
  2. ensure that CDMHPs and crisis intervention workers will not have to go out alone on high-risk home visits.
  3. ensure better access to case files so we know when we're going into a situation that might be dangerous    
The Marty Smith law is the strongest law in our country governing the safety of mental health workers who do high-risk outreach visits in the community. This law is the product of collaborative work between our union, providers, and other mental health advocates. Read the full text of the Marty Smith Act.

Diane Sosne and Yolanda SmithAppreciation all around
For her tireless advocacy on the Marty Smith Act, we honored Marty's widow Yolanda by making her a lifelong honorary member of SEIU 1199NW. She expressed her appreciation of all the work by our members to get this law passed by sharing a moving letter of thanks.