Officials at Waterbury Gardens Nursing and Rehab have been given the go-ahead to begin the process of closing the facility, according to a new filing with the state.
The state Superior Court, Hartford District, this week entered an order authorizing Waterbury Gardens officials to begin the process of closing the facility at 128 Cedar Ave.
The closure will impact 125 employees at the facility, some of whom are represented by a union, according to a federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act report filed by Katharine B. Sacks on Sept. 6, on behalf of Waterbury Gardens.
The closure won’t happen for at least 60 days from the posting, the WARN notice said. The facility may remain open for longer than that as the company works to “assist our residents in finding new homes in preparation for the closure of this facility,” Sacks said.
The WARN Act ensures that employees will receive compensation and benefits for the full 60 days of the notice, even if the facility closes sooner for some reason, as long as employees don’t resign prior to being laid off, or are not discharged for cause prior to that.
“Depending on the rate of discharge, we may need to scale down staff to meet the needs of the remaining residents and satisfy our fiduciary obligations to spend money responsibly. Union members may have bumping rights. We will work with Union representatives to address this situation on a rolling basis, as needed,” Sacks wrote in the WARN notice.
Sacks said the company will work with the state Department of Labor and the New England Healthcare Employees Union District 1199 to provide resources for future employment.
