In her nearly three decades as a Nurse, Norma Torres has witnessed plenty of trauma. But nothing in her experience prepared her for what she and her colleagues in the ICU at St. John’s Regional Medical Center have had to endure in the past year. For Norma and too many others, the physical and emotional stresses of the pandemic will continue to haunt them, long after things return to “normal” for the rest of us. That is why she, along with her Union Sisters and Brothers at SEIU-UHW, spoke out to support Assembly Bill 650, the Healthcare Worker Recognition and Retention Act.

AB 650 aims to recognize the sacrifices frontline healthcare workers have made, by requiring certain healthcare employers with more than 100 employees to pay bonuses to all non-executive employees who worked during the pandemic. Norma’s statements in support of AB 650 were reported in the LA Daily News, and ABC 30 Fresno. View excerpts from the press conference below.

Norma speaks out about why we must recognize healthcare workers:\

Norma takes a question from La Opinión:\