PeaceHealth informed the Washington State Employment Security Department that it is planning to eliminate 94 positions throughout the state. Of those cut positions, 27 are located in Whatcom County, according to a Feb. 11 letter from PeaceHealth to ESD.
PeaceHealth announced the layoffs will take effect April 12. Washington state law requires employers give 60 days’ notice to employees in the event of a mass layoff.
The layoffs will impact positions across many of PeaceHealth’s Whatcom County locations, from the St. Joseph Medical Center to the Squalicum Surgery Center to the Lynden Clinic that opened nearly two years ago.
Impacted positions include clinical social workers, mental health therapists, assistant nurse managers and various administrative positions. Many of the positions are unionized. The February 11 letter said some unions have “bumping rights” for laid off employees, meaning senior employees whose positions were eliminated may have the chance to take the job of a less senior employee.
“We cannot predict with certainty which represented employees will ultimately be affected or the exact order in which employees will be separated,” the letter stated.
This round of layoffs came just months after PeaceHealth announced plans last October to lay off 241 positions across the state, with 55 of those in Bellingham.
PeaceHealth is a Catholic nonprofit organization that operates the only hospital in Whatcom County, St. Joseph Medical Center, and is one of the largest employers in the county.
