Organizations seek to help employees following health facility closures

EAU CLAIRE — More than a month after the closures of two Hospital Sisters Health System hospitals, organizations are still working to assist employees laid off by the closures.

One organization working to help those laid off by HSHS and Prevea is the West Central Workforce Development Board.

The West Central Workforce Development Board, also called West Central Works, offers “local input and direction for meeting workforce development goals as outlined in state and federal statutes,” said Debra Nichols, the board’s Vice President of Business Solutions.

The organization oversees nine counties in West Central Wisconsin, said Nichols. They seek to make Wisconsin’s workforce successful by connecting with other organizations and utilizing their resources.

When they were notified of the closures they started Rapid Response services, said Nichols. To offer services, the board partnered with many organizations including the Department of Workforce Development Job Service of Wisconsin, service providers, and economic and workforce development organizations on the state and local level.

“As part of the program design, the Rapid Response team provided on-site informational sessions about available resources and services to affected workers to help with the layoff transition through the Federal WIOA (Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act) Dislocated Workers program,” said Nichols. “Additionally, we hosted four community job fairs which were very well attended by both employers and job seekers.”

According to Nichols, during the informational sessions, they discussed many topics including the Dislocated Worker Program, planning your career, and the resources they have access to.

She said that, in the sessions and job fairs they offered since February, they have seen more than 700 employees attend. 81 employers and more than 300 employees attended the first job fair to happen after the announcement.

“Some job seekers found immediate local jobs, others chose to remain living in the Chippewa Valley and commute to other communities for work,” Nichols said. “Some chose early retirement. Others are still actively looking as we saw at our career fair this week which was held at River Prairie.”

After the first announcement that the hospitals and Prevea health locations in the Chippewa Valley would be closing, more people asked their organization for information, said Nichols. When March 22, the date the two HSHS hospitals, Sacred Heart and St. Joseph’s, closed, started to get closer they saw more people look into their services.

According to the press release announcing the update closure times, Western Wisconsin Prevea locations were set to close by April 21. The Prevea Western Wisconsin residency clinics and location at University of Wisconsin Stout are planned to be in use until June 30.

The board is not the only organization working to help employees during this time.

Dr. Richard Helmers, the regional vice president for Wisconsin’s Mayo Clinic Health System, said the health system noticed more people applying for their available jobs. The system has quickened its pace when hiring and getting employees acclimated to the new space.

The new employees coming to the system also allow them to take on more patients, he said.

“We will continue to work to match qualified healthcare workers with positions that are appropriate for their skills,” said Helmers.

According to a spokesperson with the OakLeaf Medical Network, it is important to keep healthcare providers in the area as much as possible. They have also added more people and services.

While there might be a conception that, because there are more employees there are less jobs, Nichols said the opposite is true.

“I continue to hear from employers who cannot fill their positions fast enough…” said Nichols. “If you are looking for a job, whether it is in your same field or if you are looking for a career path change, please walk into your local Job Center and we can assist you.”

Nichols said people who are interested in finding employers can go to the Job Center of Wisconsin’s website at jobcenterofwisconsin.com .