Peshtigo Nursing Home Closing
PESHTIGO-- A Peshtigo nursing home is moving all of its residents out of the facility, blaming workers in an ongoing a labor dispute. But employees say they aren't coming to work because they are not getting paid.
Employees tell us their paychecks have been late and even bounced when they tried to cash them. That is prompting most of the nursing staff to stay home and forcing the owner of the facility to declare a “labor emergency.”
Whispering Oaks Care Center is losing all 26 of its residents.
“It’s kind of a relief since we're dealing with no pay, no supplies, just worrying if we're going to get our paychecks or not,” said current employee Brittney Bennetts.
Bennetts says many of the nursing staff employees refused to show up for work recently because of payroll issues.
The owner tells NBC26 “…it was determined that due to a labor dispute and a threatened work stoppage by the nursing staff workers, immediate outplacement of the facility's residents to another facility was the correct action to implement..."
The state department of health services is stepping in to help transfer the residents.
"Our job is to make sure that individuals are receiving the appropriate care at this point Whispering Oaks is in compliance," said Wisconsin Health Services Department spokeswoman Stephanie Smiley.
The facility's owner says no decision has been about permanently shutting down and while workers say they're sad to see this happen, some say the writing has been on the wall for several months.
"I definitely feel it should of been handled differently the employees are not treated fairly we do our best to take care of the residents but when you don't have supplies you can only do so much," Bennett said.
So while the nursing staff is fed up, management says the residents are receiving top notch care. But they'll soon be getting their care somewhere else.
The owner says errors in deposits has resulted in late and bounced paychecks, but insists employees have been paid all they are owed.
The residents will be moving from the facility within the next few days.
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