Staff Report

FORT WAYNE — One-hundred and twenty-six employees are to be laid off locally as a result of Lutheran opting to end an agreement with a food service provider.

Compass Group North America issued a notice to the Indiana Department of Workforce Development under the Federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act on Dec. 22 announcing the layoffs. They are to affect workers employed by Morrison Healthcare who are members of Compass Group North America at Lutheran Hospital in Fort Wayne as well as Lutheran Kosciusko Hospital in Warsaw.

The employees will be laid off on Jan. 25. The notice, which was also sent to Warsaw Mayor Joe Thallemer and Fort Wayne Mayor Tom Henry, notes that it is believed “that most employees will be hired by the new vendor.”

Lutheran Health Network Director of Communications Megan Hubartt confirmed that latter information to InkFreeNews in an email, stating that “We anticipate the majority of team members working with the current provider will remain with the new provider.”

“We are grateful to Morrison for their service,” she also said.

Thallemer also commented to InkFreeNews on the layoffs, noting that “It’s unsettling” especially with them happening around the holidays. He mentioned that the new vendor being expected to rehire most of the workers is at least “a silver lining” in the matter.