West Suburban hospital sends permanent layoff notices to about 500 furloughed employees

OAK PARK, Ill. (WLS) -- About 500 furloughed employees of West Suburban Medical Center have received notices that they will not be returning to their jobs, marking the latest development in the uncertain future of the hospital as its owners continue negotiating a settlement over its future.

ABC7 obtained multiple copies of a letter sent to employees stating there would be "a mass layoff at West Suburban Medical Center" beginning Aug. 31 and that "this mass layoff is expected to be permanent."

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West Suburban Medical Center CEO Manoj Prasad told ABC7 the notices were required under the Illinois Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification, or WARN Act, which limits furloughs to six months and requires advance notification before a permanent separation.

Prasad said the hospital's plans to reopen have not changed, but there is still no firm reopening date.

Sylvia Williams, a former head of nursing at West Suburban Medical Center, said staff knew layoffs were a possibility but hoped they would not become necessary.

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The notices come amid an ongoing court battle between West Suburban Medical Center owners Prasad and landowner Rathnaker Patlola. The two sued each other in the weeks following the hospital's closure in March.

ABC7's I-Team was in court Tuesday for a hearing on progress toward a settlement agreement involving the hospital. During the hearing, attorneys representing Resilience Healthcare did not mention layoffs.

Sources close to the settlement discussions told the I-Team the notices are "a big deal" and that Prasad "had not consulted with anyone" about plans to permanently lay off the remaining furloughed employees.

One source also told the I-Team that the judge was surprised by the news and "upset" it was not disclosed.

Patlola issued a statement saying, in part, that he was "surprised and disappointed" and that employees "deserved far better."

Settlement negotiations over the future of West Suburban hospital remain ongoing.