Cooley Dickinson cuts jobs and hours

NORTHAMPTON, Mass. (WWLP) - Cooley Dickinson Hospital has announced that 21 employees will be losing their jobs or valuable hours.

The Massachusetts Nurses Association held a picket on Monday evening to protest this decision. They say the hospital didn’t have to reduce staff since they say it made more than 8 million dollars last year.

Craig Melin, the CEO and President of Cooley Dickinson Hospital, said that is untrue and that the hospital "finished last year at 5 million dollars."

He said that was the profit the hospital needed to cover operating expenses.

Melin told 22News that the layoffs were necessary because the hospital is facing a ten million dollar budget deficit this year. He said hospital employees were offered a choice between benefit changes or a reduction in staff.

While most employees chose benefit changes, he said the MNA chose a reduction in staff so they wouldn’t have to modify their three year contract.

Sally Surgen told 22News that "the problem with opening any contract is that everything in the contract is at risk and we did not want to do that."

The layoffs are “hospital-wide” according to hospital officials. But the MNA says they feel they are being blamed for them.

Surgen said they held Monday’s picket to inform the public about their situation and to hopefully win their support.