KITCHENER, Ontario, April 8, 2011 /Canada NewsWire/ - Workers at the Salvation Army A.R Goudie Eventide long-term care home in Kitchener, Ontario are reeling after management announced yesterday it would be closing the facility.
No date for the closure was given, but the home has already notified the Local Integrated Health Network and is in the process of contacting the residents' families.
The workers are represented by CAW Local 1106, which was in the middle of contract negotiations with the Salvation Army when the announcement was made.
"It is extremely frustrating that this "socially conscious" employer chose to remain silent at the bargaining table about their viability," said Bill Gibson, CAW Kitchener Area Director.
Gibson said the union will be meeting with the employer to push it to keep the facility open, failing that the facility must be sold to a new owner keeping the home open. Many of the workers are women with up to 25 years seniority.
"The potential job loss for our members is devastating however the uprooting of residents during the most fragile period in their lives is saddening," said Gibson.
