Union Braces for Sale of Jefferson County Home

Workers at Jefferson’s Countryside Home are bracing for sale of the 120-bed skilled care facility to a for-profit corporation – a painful and probably ill-considered move to fill the County’s budget deficit.

AFSCME Council 40 is demanding that Jefferson County administrators open up the process for sale of the home to more scrutiny and transparency. Potential buyers need to answer important questions about maintaining quality care for Countryside’s residents – and the wages and benefits of workers, says the union.

About 120 members of AFSCME Local 2418 (nursing assistants, housekeepers, laundry and dietary workers) and 20 RNs in AFSCME Local 723 are represented by the union.

Private nursing home chains in the industry commonly do not offer the kind of staff compensation that fosters stability and long-term commitment, the hallmark of quality care, according to the union.

The Jefferson County Board effectively put Countryside Home on the auction block in a special election last September, as the recession hit and the State cut shared revenues. Separating out the nursing home line from the rest of its annual budget, the Board asked voters to approve a tax hike of $1.9 million annually for four years to maintain operations. While only 16 percent of voters came to the polls, 56% voted against the tax increase.

After the sale, Countryside will lose more than $3.5 million in public money it now receives.

In an advisory referendum the previous spring, voters said they were willing to increase taxes to keep the nursing home a public operation. About 95 percent of nursing home residents are from Jefferson County.

Dedicated Workforce At Risk

“We want the County Board and its Finance Committee to ask each potential buyers how they intend to operate without that funding – and still make a profit,” says Bill Moberly, AFSCME Council 40 staff representative. “It’s become painfully obvious that workers would have to make concessions, upwards of 30% to their wage and benefits package.”

Countryside Home first opened in 1856 and was rebuilt by the County as a brand new 120-bed facility in 2003. While many for-profit facilities experience turnover rates of more than 100% per year, its turnover is less then 20%. Average tenure of Countryside’s dedicated workforce: 16 years.

“It’s frustrating that the County has been unwilling or unable to come forward with any information on any prospective buyer, although the bids are in,” says Moberly. While the sale may move forward, issues of resident care are still a concern to the public, the residents, their families and the Countryside workers. The union intents to continue representing workers if the home is privatized.

“These are difficult decisions and the public needs to be able to ask questions and assure themselves that the County Board is looking out for the interests of Countryside residents and its workers – and not just passing the problems off to someone else so the County budget looks good at election time,” Moberly wrote in a recent communication to the County.