Buyer, union at odds over nursing home takeover
A plan to save a struggling nursing home in Stamford is at risk of collapsing itself, according to its opponents. Hundreds of jobs are on the line at Smith House, which houses more than 100 patients.
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Nov 12, 2015, 4:39 AM
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Updated 3,316 days ago
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A plan to save a struggling nursing home in Stamford is at risk of collapsing itself, according to its opponents.
Hundreds of jobs are on the line at Smith House, which houses more than 100 patients.
A private operator has offered to buy the facility, but union representatives say the company's plan is unacceptable.
"We would love to keep the place open, but not on the backs of the workers," says SEIU Local 1199 president David Pickus.
Center Management Group would spend $5 million upgrading the home, but would cut employee benefits and pensions.
Some nurses, however, say compromise is necessary.
"If they want to keep their jobs and stay with the patients, they should be more willing to negotiate," says Mary Sara, a Smith House nurse.
Michael Handler, Stamford's director of administration, put it more bluntly.
"I think they know that the wages and the benefits that they have today are going to go away regardless of what happens," Handler says.
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