Dear Editor:
Protest against forced mandatory overtime by employees of Larned State Hospital was prohibited by the secretary of the Kansas Department of Aging and Disability Services (KDADS), Shawn Sullivan. According to hospital sources, an email was sent out notifying LSH employees that the protest, planned for Saturday at the Pawnee County Courthouse, was considered “an action against the state” and anyone who attended would be subject to termination. “The staffs are scared and tired of being bullied by their supervisors.”, said an employee spokesperson.  Faced with a broken system, Gov. Sam Brownback’s mental health Task Force was designed to specifically address problems at the hospital.  “It’s a concentration camp.”, complained one resident’s wife. “It’s about keeping people locked up, it’s a sham.”, said former superintendent Stephen Feinstein. A hospital resident said “you can see the exhaustion on their faces. They are treating the staff so badly that no one wants to come here to work anymore.” One employee who worked 35 hours of overtime in 2 weeks didn’t think his time was too bad compared to his coworkers 65 hours of overtime. “It’s not just once in a while, it’s all the time. Families are suffering because of it and no one cares.”
Lisa McNett
Larned