Alta Bates Summit Medical Center to Cut 300 Jobs by Mid-August
Alta Bates Summit Medical Center in Berkeley and Oakland announced yesterday that it will cut 300 jobs by the middle of August, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. The center has lost $19 million this year and could lose $40 million more "unless something is done," according to Irwin Hansen, the hospital's chief executive. Temporary nurses made necessary by the nursing shortage cost the hospital $2 million in June, and a series of one-day strikes have also increased costs. The layoffs are "not expected" to include registered nurses, the Chronicle reports. In addition to the job cuts, the hospital is seeking to cut its three million square feet of building space by 40% (Russell, San Francisco Chronicle, 7/20).
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