Chatham-Kent Health Alliance (CKHA) says it will eliminate 49 positions as part of a financial recovery plan aimed at reducing a multi-million-dollar deficit, while a local union warns the cuts could strain frontline care. Hospital president and CEO Adam Topp said CKHA is facing an approximate $5 million shortfall and must look at staffing costs, which make up the majority of its expenses. “We can’t continue to sustain healthcare with a $5 million deficit,” Topp told CTV News. “Our labour expenses are 70 per cent of what we do. We can’t solve that deficit if only looking at supplies.” The hospital says 27 of the positions being eliminated are tied to its staffing float pool — workers who are not assigned to a specific unit and instead fill vacant shifts as needed. An additional five full-time and 17 part-time roles will be cut elsewhere in the organization. Topp said the float pool was expanded during the COVID-19 pandemic to deal with high vacancy rates and staff absences but is now being scaled back as staffing levels stabilize. “We are down to a two per cent vacancy rate for our staff, which is excellent,” he said. “But it also means that we don’t need a float pool as large as we have.” He described the changes as part of broader post-pandemic planning to return operations closer to pre-COVID levels. “It is post-pandemic planning. That’s exactly what it is,” Topp said. CKHA says 19 of the affected positions are currently vacant, and noted there are 44 vacancies across the organization that will help manage the transition through attrition, retirements and redeployment over the next six months. Topp said the hospital’s goal is to avoid involuntary job losses, but stopped short of guaranteeing there would be no layoffs. “There will never be a guarantee of no layoffs,” he said, adding the hospital expects natural turnover to create additional vacancies during the implementation period. Despite the staffing reductions, Topp said patient care will not be affected, noting recent investments in areas such as the emergency department and diagnostic imaging. “This will not have an impact on wait times … it does not affect our programs,” he said. But Unifor Local 2458, which represents about 650 workers at the hospital, said the cuts will be felt on the front lines. Union president Ken Durocher said members were informed earlier this week that full-time registered practical nurse, personal support worker, and clerk positions would be eliminated. “It’s shocking,” Durocher said. “To be brought into a meeting and to lose this many full-time jobs at one time was very shocking — and again, disappointing.” He said float pool positions were originally created to help address staffing shortages and reducing them could leave remaining workers stretched thin. “The ones that are still on the unit will probably end up working short daily,” Durocher said. Durocher also challenged the hospital’s assertion that patient care will not be impacted. “They can say that — we’ve lived it,” he said. “When you start taking staff away … it’s affected.” The cuts come as hospitals across Ontario face mounting financial pressures tied to rising costs, aging infrastructure, and increasing demand. Topp said CKHA is among roughly 100 of the province’s 135 hospitals currently projecting deficits. “We’re not alone in this process,” he said. Durocher said broader funding challenges in the healthcare system are contributing to the situation, arguing frontline workers are often the ones who bear the brunt of cost-cutting measures. “It always seems to come back to frontline workers,” he said. CKHA says it will continue working with unions as the changes are implemented, with further adjustments possible as it works toward balancing its budget in the coming years.
