By Daily Press staff
A group of 15-20 hospital workers protested the closure of the skilled nursing floor in front of UCLA-Santa Monica Medical Center on Wednesday.
Though a press release from the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 3299 said the closure will force the layoff of “dozens of employees,” a hospital representative said that wasn’t the case.
Most of the 40 employees who will lose their jobs as a result of the closure will be reassigned within the UCLA hospital system, said Mark Speare, a senior associate director at the facility.
Only a “handful” of workers — approximately six or less — will be laid off, Speare said. The skilled nursing facility will close by July 1.
The workers not only were concerned about losing their jobs, but also about the quality of care patients who are forced to transfer to private facilities may receive.
“Private convalescent homes typically use over-worked and underpaid nursing staff to stay competitive,” according to the press release.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on April 24, 2003. Read the original PDF.