Workers Protest at Fulton State Hospital
April 28, 2010
FULTON - Workers and supporters gathered Wednesday at the Fulton State Hospital to protest budget cuts, causing lost jobs at the hospital.
About 322 hospital employees will lose their jobs when the cuts go through.
Workers worry these lost jobs will result in less care for patients. "Some patients, their families don't visit them, so we are like their family," said James Goodwin. Goodwin is a caretaker at the hospital and has worked there for about 12 years. He says his patients won't recieve adequate care if workers like him lose their jobs.
But the job losses won't just affect Fulton State Hospital, said Blaine Soils. Soils is a security guard at the hospital. "Callaway, Fulton, Audrain, Boone...and I can keep going," said Soils as he listed counties he thinks the cuts will affect. Soils says the economic hurt in Fulton will trickle down to other counties.
