Last month, the Sturgis Hospital announced it would be ceasing operations and closing effective June 19. That announcement was made three days earlier on June 16 – and a lawsuit recently filed by the Michigan Nurses Association claims unionized nurses working at the hospital were given the same amount of notice that they would be laid off.
The federal lawsuit, filed on July 10, alleges Sturgis Hospital violated the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification , or WARN Act, which requires employers with 100 or more employees to give at least 60 days of notice before a facility closure or mass layoff.
According to court filings, the MNA alleges hospital leadership gave the union only three days notice that the hospital would be closing and all unionized registered nurses employed at the hospital would be laid off.
The suit asks for back pay, benefits reimbursement, and potential monetary damages and legal expense assistance for the affected nurses.
In a statement sent via email, MNA Executive Director Janella James said:
"Sturgis Hospital, which was known to struggle financially for years, should have followed federal law, which we believe required it to give employees 60 days’ notice of closure; instead, it gave employees – including nurses who worked there for decades – just 72 hours, causing significant hardship for them. Some nurses still have not been paid their final paycheck and all were cut off their health insurance by the end of June without even rights to continue their insurance through COBRA. The hospital gave notice properly in 2022 even though it did not close then, and there’s no valid reason for failing to do so as it became clear this time that its longtime financial problems would indeed result in closure. We contend that MNA nurses who worked at the hospital are legally entitled to a full 60 days’ pay and benefits from the date of notice," James said.
Sturgis Hospital did not respond to WMUK's request for comment.
