The Chatham-Kent Health Alliance (CKHA) will eliminate 49 positions as it confronts a significant budget shortfall, a move that has drawn sharp criticism from the union representing hospital workers. The hospital says the cuts are a necessary part of a financial recovery plan to tackle a deficit of approximately $5 million.
Adam Topp, the hospital's president and CEO, said that with labour costs accounting for 70 per cent of all expenses, staffing levels had to be addressed. “We can’t continue to sustain healthcare with a $5 million deficit,” Topp stated. “We can’t solve that deficit if only looking at supplies.”
The plan involves eliminating 32 full-time and 17 part-time roles. Of these, 27 are from the hospital's staffing float pool, which consists of nurses and other healthcare workers who fill vacant shifts across various units. This pool was expanded during the COVID-19 pandemic to manage high staff vacancy rates and absences.
Topp explained that with staffing levels now stabilized and a vacancy rate of just two per cent, the large float pool is no longer required. “It is post-pandemic planning. That’s exactly what it is,” he said, framing the decision as a return to pre-pandemic operational norms. The hospital expects the cuts to save approximately $3.5 million annually by the 2027/2028 fiscal year.
Transition plan aims to avoid layoffs
Hospital officials have stated a commitment to avoiding involuntary job losses. They plan to manage the reductions through attrition, retirements, and redeploying staff to other vacant positions within the organization over the next six months. Currently, 19 of the targeted 49 positions are already vacant, and CKHA has another 44 openings across its departments that may help absorb affected employees.
“The expectation is, given our natural turnover, which is about six percent a year… all of those 49 positions will be absorbed without any individual leaving the organization,” Topp said. However, he did not offer a firm guarantee that no layoffs would occur. “There will never be a guarantee of no layoffs,” he acknowledged, but expressed optimism that natural turnover would create enough vacancies.
Topp also assured the public that patient care would not suffer, pointing to recent investments in the emergency department and diagnostic imaging as evidence of the hospital's commitment to service. “This will not have an impact on wait times … it does not affect our programs,” he said.
Union warns of strain on frontline care
Despite the hospital’s assurances, the union representing approximately 650 workers at CKHA has sounded the alarm. Ken Durocher, president of Unifor Local 2458, called the news “shocking” and “disappointing,” revealing that members were informed that full-time registered practical nurse, personal support worker, and clerk positions would be cut.
When you start taking staff away … it’s affected.
Durocher challenged the administration's claim that patient care will remain unaffected. He argued that reducing the float pool, which was created to alleviate staffing shortages, will inevitably leave the remaining workers spread too thin. “The ones that are still on the unit will probably end up working short daily,” he warned. “They can say that. we’ve lived it.” The union has long been concerned about understaffing, an issue that can impact everything from wait times to the quality of patient interaction, issues seen in other healthcare settings, such as the dental sector where clinic issues have led to calls for patients to undergo HIV tests.
Recognizing the stress the announcement would cause, Topp noted that the hospital has an employee assistance program available for affected staff. “I think with this type of news, it’s stressful for staff, and we’ve made sure that there’s an employment assistance program in place on site for the staff that are affected,” he said.
Widespread financial pressure on Ontario hospitals
The financial challenges facing CKHA are not unique. According to Topp, about 100 of Ontario's 135 hospitals are currently projecting deficits, grappling with rising costs, aging infrastructure, and increased demand for complex care from an aging population. This systemic issue highlights the broader funding challenges in Ontario's healthcare system, a key focus of the recent Ford government budget.
Durocher said that these broader systemic issues often result in frontline workers bearing the consequences of cost-cutting measures. “It always seems to come back to frontline workers,” he said. The situation reflects ongoing concerns across the province about healthcare funding and resource allocation, as detailed in reports from organizations like the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) on international health systems.
Topp did not rule out the possibility of further staff reductions in the future as the hospital continues its multi-year plan to balance its budget. The hospital's current deficit for the 2026/2027 fiscal year is budgeted at $4.2 million. CKHA management says it will continue to work with the unions as the changes are phased in over the coming months.
