Facing tense crowd, commissioners privatize nursing home’s kitchen

LACONIA — Belknap County commissioners selected a private company, Glendale Senior Dining, to run its nursing home kitchen on Thursday, despite emotional opposition from county food-service workers upset that their job benefits will be reduced.

County officials say the Manchester-based company will offer jobs to the workers at an increased hourly wage, but they will no longer be in the state retirement system and won’t be able to keep their zero-premium health insurance plans.

The commission voted 2-1 to make the change, with Commissioner Glen Waring saying he was in opposition because he wanted more information. County Commission Chairman David DeVoy joined Hunter Taylor in voting to privatize.

During the meeting, nursing home residents and nursing assistants joined with the kitchen staff and their families to argue against the changeover, at times interrupting commissioners. At one point a person yelled, “Lies!”

Tanya Phillips, a licensed nursing assistant at the nursing home, questioned whether this would be the start of other privatization efforts.

“If you're going to do this to the kitchen staff, who else are you going to do this to?” she asked. “Who else are you going to privatize? Whose other lives are you going to ruin?

“These poor residents, they have a relationship with the staff members that goes for years, quality relationships. They love each other, and you're going to take that away because who’s going to stay and work for Glendale where they are not going to get what they have now. These residents are going to lose out.”

Neil Smith, contract field agent for the union representing the workers, SEA/SEIU Local 1984, questioned the quality of private service.

“If you choose to privatize the kitchen services at the nursing home, there will be less accountability to the residents who live here, less accountability to their families,” he said.

“Many advocates who would speak in favor of privatization say profit motive provides incentive for efficiencies, but all too often it’s an incentive for those private contractors to cut corners.”

Amanda Horne, who has worked in the nursing home’s kitchen for 21 years, said she stands to lose much.

“If I were to continue my employment with the nursing home through Glendale, I would lose the ability to contribute to my pension and all the benefits I have accrued,” she said. “This includes 429 hours of sick time, longevity bonuses, my insurance plan with a $500 HRA allotment, union support, a clothing allowance, a floating holiday and shift differentials. I would have five less paid holidays a year and no insurance or paid holidays for the first 60 days of employment through Glendale.

“This is a major concern to me as my husband may not be able to receive treatment or medications for his ongoing health problems. This concern extends to my son, who has neurological problems that necessitate immediate treatment.”

The kitchen, which also provides food for the county jail, is run by a salaried full-time manager, who presides over an authorized staff of 14 full-time hourly employees and 10 part-time workers. A union contract expired at the end of last year and the employees have been working without a contract.

County Administrator Debra Shackett said a meeting will be held with the union to discuss what can be done for workers to ease the transition.

“All in all, it’s the best we can do for the workers,” she said. “We’re hoping that we can relieve some of their worst fears and provide them some assistance while they transition to a new situation.”

She said the changeover should take a matter of weeks. The contract with Glendale Senior Dining is likely to span three-years.

Shackett said the change to a private contractor will save the county at least $100,000 from the $1.3 million annual cost of operating the kitchen, but commissioners said the decision was driven not by money, but by the high staff turnover and unfilled positions that are problematic under the current system.

Nursing home administrator Shelley Richardson said there are six open positions on the kitchen staff now, two full-time and four part-time. A fifth part-timer plans to leave the staff as of April 12.

She said the starting wage for a dietary aid, or food-service employee, for the county is $10.78, compared to $13.25 for Glendale Senior Dining. The private company pays a starting cook $17.50, compared to $14.11 for the county.

Richardson said Glendale Senior Dining offers 401k plans and health insurance. She didn’t have information on Glendale’s health insurance premiums, and its president, James Hecker, did not immediately return a call seeking  comment.

The kitchen serves three meals a day to 90 nursing home residents and about 90 county jail inmates.

Shackett said workers will be cashed out on their accumulated vacation time and could receive payment for 30 percent of accumulated sick time. If they are vested in the retirement system, they would still be entitled to a pension upon retirement but the benefit would not grow as it would if they stayed in their county job.

Marty Karlon, spokesman for the New Hampshire Retirement System, said anyone who was vested in the system before June 1, 2011 can collect a pension when they turn 60. That age increased to 65 for those who vested after that date.

Pensions are calculated based on service time and average final salary. It takes 10 years to vest in the system.

Retirement system members who leave before they are vested can get a refund of all of the contributions they put in, plus interest on that money. 

Shackett said Glendale Senior Dining provides good food. She has sampled it.

“It was great,” she said. “I don’t think the quality of the food will be an issue. They will try to maintain the current menus and then may start using some of their own menus. I expect the residents will see some exciting, different things, and I don’t think they’ll have any trouble with this at all.”

Glendale’s Senior Dining’s customers include the Taylor Retirement Community in Laconia and the Rockingham County Nursing Home, which reports there has been little turnover since the private company took over its kitchen two years ago.