WATCH: Interior Health moving forward with laundry privatization proposal

The Interior Health Authority (IHA) is one step closer to privatizing its laundry service.

It’s issued a call for contract service providers, as the health authority looks to outsource the service to cut down expenses. IHA currently spends roughly $10 million per year on hospital laundry service, and is forecasting an additional $10.5-million in infrastructure and equipment upgrades in the next decade.

The health authority issued a mandatory 90-day notice to the Hospital Employees Union (HEU) in November, warning it was looking at axing the in-house service.

READ MORE: IHA contemplates cutting in-house laundry; 175 jobs on the line

“Interior Health is under pressure to privatize the service in the region, putting good jobs that support local communities and families at risk,” – Bonnie Pearson, HEU spokesperson.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "Interior Health is under pressure to privatize the service in the region, putting good jobs that support local communities and families at risk," - Bonnie Pearson, HEU spokesperson.

The union had that time to come up with a viable solution to save the 175 jobs on the line, a third of which are full-time jobs in Kelowna, Vernon and Penticton. That deadline has now passed and IHA has decided to proceed forward with privatization.

“We know this is difficult news for our employees who have worked hard to make our laundry plants efficient,” says Alan Davies, Interior Health’s Director for Support Services. “But as we’ve noted from the outset, the decision to explore alternatives isn’t about the efficiency of our operations. It’s about avoiding future significant spending to replace aging equipment, an investment we can’t make when considering other health-care medical equipment priorities.”

The Hospital Employees Union responded, saying it’s disappointed with the decision, but not surprised.

“Interior Health is under pressure to privatize the service in the region, putting good jobs that support local communities and families at risk,” says HEU spokesperson, Bonnie Pearson.”If the provincial government is really serious about a jobs plan that works for all British Columbians, they need to make the modest investments in the Interior that would protect decent, family-supporting jobs that exist right now.”

Pearson says the fight isn’t over and the union and its workers will campaign to protect the current service and 175 jobs.

Interior Health and Northern Health are the only two health authorities in the province who still provide laundry services in-house.

IHA says there is still a long process in securing and moving forward with privatization. Any changes to the current service aren’t expected until the spring of 2016.