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Cedar Haven employees vote to strike over contract issues

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Employees at Cedar Haven Healthcare Center are threatening to strike after unsuccessful contract negotiations. (Photo: Michael K. Dakota, Lebanon Daily News)

For the second straight year, employees at Cedar Haven Healthcare Center are threatening to strike after unsuccessful contract negotiations.

American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees Local 2732 provided a 10-day notice of a strike Tuesday morning to nursing home management after an “overwhelming” vote in favor of a strike, according to district council director Steve Mullen.

The union — which represents employees including many licensed practical nurses and certified nursing assistants — also provided a 10-day notice to strike last fall. However, that strike was averted after employees narrowly approved a contract union officials said made many employees “unhappy.”

Lebanon County’s public nursing home, Cedar Haven, was sold in 2014 and is now owned by for-profit company Stone Barn Holdings.

Chas Blalack, a principal owner in Stone Barn Holdings, did not respond to a request for comment Tuesday morning. In 2016, however, he assured the Lebanon Daily News that residents would continue to receive quality care if a strike occurred.

“Our residents will be safe and well-cared for at Cedar Haven,” Blalack said in 2016. “Meals, therapy, and care will not be interrupted and transportation for dialysis patients will continue as usual.”

The main sticking points in the negotiations this year are “substantial” increases to employee health care contributions and reductions in paid time off, Mullen said.

“Last year, the employees gave up a tremendous amount, and this year, the employer came back and asked them to give up a lot more, and it’s just more than the employees can bear,” Mullen said. “For several months, we’ve been bargaining in good faith and we still hope we can come to an agreement and avoid a strike, because a strike is not good for the employees and it’s not good for the residents either.”

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Cedar Haven Healthcare Center employees are threatening to strike after unsuccessful contract negotiations. (Photo: Michael K. Dakota, Lebanon Daily News)

According to a Sept. 28 letter Blalack sent to employees, Cedar Haven plans to decrease its contribution to health care coverage and employees would be required to pay premiums of $70.05 to $309.32 per two-week period for single coverage.

Guaranteed paid time off would be “up to” 15 days for use as sick days and vacation, states the letter, which was obtained by the Lebanon Daily News. Many employees would receive fewer days. If the financial performance of Cedar Haven improves, employees would “likely” receive more paid time off.

There would be no wage reductions, and wages for all employees within the bargaining unit would receive at least $13 per hour, the letter says.

Cedar Haven has a five-star overall rating from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the highest possible rating. Mullen said that in order to keep that quality rating and continue to provide quality service, an employer has to pay a decent wage and benefits.

Mullen also confirmed that AFSCME is filing charges against Cedar Haven with the National Labor Relations Board.

The union alleges that Cedar Haven bargained in bad faith and threatened employees if they voted to reject what the nursing home called its “final offer,” according to a document AFSCME sent to employees that was provided to the Lebanon Daily News.

The union offered to postpone a strike if Cedar Haven management would continue to negotiate, according to the letter, but Cedar Haven refused. Cedar Haven also announced it would implement 12-hour shifts for employees, the letter says.

Financial challenges

The Lebanon County commissioners voted to sell Cedar Haven in 2014 – a split decision opposed by commissioner Jo Ellen Litz — in part due to concerns about its operating cost and employee pension liabilities.

In a Sept. 28 letter to employees explaining the need to make changes to employee benefits, Blalack detailed financial “challenges” that are now facing the home as a privately-owned entity.

State Medicaid reimbursements have decreased by $12.25 per resident per day since January, and 86 percent of the home’s residents use Medicaid, according to the letter. There were also more than 350 call-offs by employees in a recent two-month period, a “staggering” amount that increases costs for overtime and the hiring of agency nurses.

“Unfortunately, our current efforts and minor revisions to the collective bargaining agreement would not bring Cedar Haven to where we need to be given the current circumstances,” the letter states. “Significant changes are required to ensure that Cedar Haven can continue to provide quality care to the Lebanon community.”

This story is part of a partnership between Lebanon Daily News and WITF.


Brett Sholtis
Brett Sholtis

Brett Sholtis was a health reporter for WITF/Transforming Health until early 2023. Sholtis is the 2021-2022 Reveal Benjamin von Sternenfels Rosenthal Grantee for Mental Health Investigative Journalism with the Rosalynn Carter Fellowships for Mental Health Journalism. His award-winning work on problem areas in mental health policy and policing helped to get a woman moved from a county jail to a psychiatric facility. Sholtis is a University of Pittsburgh graduate and a Pennsylvania Army National Guard Kosovo campaign veteran.

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