The Saskatoon Health Region currently uses North Sask Laundry services in Prince Albert as well as a company in Calgary to clean hospital laundry. Next week, they will start shipping all of their laundry to Calgary leaving 29 temporary full time workers in Prince Albert without jobs.
"We would like some explanation on why they believe taxpayers money should be shipped out of province for a profitable company. We are a non-profit organization and we provide good service to the public," says Anita Labossiere, president of CUPE 3736 and a laundry worker herself.
The Vice President of Finance and Administration for the Saskatoon Health Region, Nilesh Kavia, says K-Bro's pricing is lower and going to the single supplier is saving the health region in excess of 600-thousand dollars.
North Sask has been cleaning the laundry since November when the Saskatoon Health Region's central laundry facility was closed due to safety issues. North Sask Laundry Manager, Hal Dogniez, says it doesn't seem right to eliminate the positions with little notice.
"The temporary full time positions will go onto the casual list and remain there. Its major hours cut for them. They're going from full time hours to an on-call basis."
But Kavia says the announcement shouldn't come as that big of a surprise.
"We've always thought of that as a short term solution. We were in crisis mode since November and had to make sure that we had laundry we could supply to our patients." says Kavia.
K-Bro will take over laundry duties effective May 10th.
