TEAMSTERS@WORK: LOCAL 251’S RHODE ISLAND HOSPITAL
TEAMSTERS@WORK: LOCAL 251’S RHODE ISLAND HOSPITAL
Every year Local 251 Teamsters in the Providence’s Rhode Island Hospital laundry services department deliver millions of pounds of clean laundry. That translates to:
• 95,000 OR towels
• 987,000 bath blankets,
• 1,449,96 bath towels
• 408,000 scrub sets
• 2 million isolation gowns
• 1.2 million pillow cases
• And thousands of other items including under
pads and flat sheets.
The more than 100 workers clean, sort, fold the hospitals linens ensuring the hospital continues running smoothly and cleanly. They Teamsters work in the hospital’s central facility and deliver to more than 50 offsite locations.
Imagine what would happen without these Teamsters?
“There are plenty of television shows about hospitals, but nobody focusses on the people behind the scenes making the whole operation tick,” said Paul Santos, Local 251 President and 27-year veteran of Rhode Island Hospital. “A hospital is an intricate operation that takes hundreds of skilled people to make it run 24/7.”
Located just south of downtown Providence, Rhode Island Hospital’s main campus occupies more than five blocks. Additionally, the Teamsters represent workers at the hospital’s numerous satellite buildings throughout the state of Rhode Island and southeastern Massachusetts. More than 2,500 Local 251 Teamsters work wall-to-wall in the facilities.
Rhode Island Hospital Teamsters have entered the beginning stages of negotiations. This photo feature on Rhode Island Hospital’s laundry services workers is the second in a series profiling Rhode Island Hospital Teamsters.
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