Midland Memorial Hospital Attempts to Avoid Layoffs

MIDLAND, TX — As hospitals continue to lay off workers, Midland Memorial Hospital stated they are being “very thoughtful” about laying off workers and are committed to keeping staff employed.

According to MRT, the announcement comes on the heels of Medical Center Hospital in Odessa and Odessa Regional Medical Center laying off a combined 90 employees.

According to Midland Memorial Hospital CEO Russell Meyers, the hospital has lost nearly 15% in profits since elective surgeries were canceled by Governor Abbott. In March, the hospital lost approximately $1 million in collections and they expect to lose even more in April.

Employees who were employed in areas of the hospital that are currently shut down have been moved to other areas of the hospital. Others have lost hours or asked to take paid time off, especially those who work in departments that perform elective surgeries.

“Will we consider doing more of that and more intentionally? I think we’ll have to the longer this goes on,” said Meyers.

According to Meyers, it is not uncommon for employees to go home during normal times when there is not enough work to carry out.

“When that occurs, hourly employees are given the opportunity to take the time without pay or to use their accrued paid time off,” said Meyers.

Employees who are reassigned are placed in the labor pool to handle duties “associated with managing COVID-19,” including answering calls to 68Nurse and sewing cloth masks for coworkers and patients.

“As the pandemic continues, we will continue to assess the best options for matching our costs to our reduced revenues, while keeping in mind our commitment to our workforce and our need to be prepared for a surge in activity once the current restrictions are eased,” he said.

Employees are expected to return to work as soon as elective surgeries can be scheduled once again.

“This will end. We will go back to work … we need our expert people ready to go when we can turn that switch back on, so we’re going to be very thoughtful before we do anything that dramatically impacts our workers,” said Meyers.