Council has resolved to sell off its 3 aged care facilities. Whether or not this is the appropriate decision is not the point. What concerns us is the manner and process by which this decision was made. There has been:
- No community consultation whatsoever
- No warning to staff, residents of these homes, or volunteers
- No public documentation indicating the reasons why such a decision was made
- The decision was made behind closed doors
- No financial report tabled in council on the parlous state of aged care
- No upfront admission by council that for the past 4 years at least council has been in the red for between $1m and $2m per annum in this area.
We certainly acknowledge that recent federal legislation has impacted severely on councils’ ability to provide such services. This however does not obviate the need for full transparency and communication with ratepayers and those directly impacted by such a decision. Our view is that it should be up to residents to determine how their money is being spent. Are residents willing to have their rates subsidise aged care in the community? Or, do they believe that private companies are the best option? Such decisions can only be based on council providing the community with the full facts. That has never happened in this council. No document has ever been tabled to explain why aged care has been running at such a loss for year upon year. Nor has any document been tabled which outlines a business case for the sale. Residents have been kept in the dark. That is tragically the modus operandi of this council on so many issues!
The very fact that such a momentous decision can be made in secret and that 9 individuals are totally complicit in endorsing this veil of secrecy is frankly unconscionable.
Many more questions need answering. For instance:
- Will council also be ‘outsourcing’ its home care assistance functions – ie cleaning, carers, etc?
- What guarantee do employees have of future work?
What irks us even more is the tone of the public statements issued by Hyams and the CEO. As shown below the Hyams document is nothing more than spin taken to the nth degree. The fact that employees can ‘transfer’ if they wish to the new employer ignores completely the fact that this only applies to permanent staff and not long term casuals and is at the mercy of the new owners as the McKenzie document (uploaded here) makes clear.
To see the impact that such a decision has had we publish one of several emails we have received. This is the human cost – something that our 9 councillors have obviously ignored and refused to put out for public debate!
This is my first time to get in touch with you, although I read your work with great interest.
I do need to stay anonymous, as I am an employee …. of one of the aged care residents. Do with this information what you will but please let me stay anonymous.
….. the very first I heard of this was this morning, February 6, 8.38 am in an email from mayor Jamie Hymes. Next communication came from the union, at 1.38 pm as I am an in-home-support staff as well. At 2.08 pm another email arrived from CEO Rebecca McKenzie, addressed to all employees of council.
All this without any inkling or whisper and with not much notice either.
As a permanent part-time staff of xxx years , working as an in-home-support worker, I can’t help but feel this is our fate for next year and this is exactly how it is going to be handled as well.
….. as an employee, what I find most offensive is 1. this was all done in secrecy, 2. no ifs and buts 3. Council is offering for residents and staff free “shrink” sessions.
Regards,
And finally, the Union reaction –
Glen Eira Debates 
February 7, 2019 at 12:50 PM
The question of aged care was asked of council in April 2017
Aged Care Facility
“Neighbouring municipalities do not offer “Aged care facilities” (live-in) as they believe this is better serviced by the State Government, yet Glen Eira has approx. 173 full time live-in aged care citizens. As a consequence, Glen Eira Council has incurred losses of some $20.0million over the past 7 years so it doesn’t appear that the users pays is working (refer Annual reports Glen Eira 2010-2017). Why are the Glen Eira residents being asked to support just 173 full time live-in aged care residents when this money could be better used to support youth programs given that there are in excess of 63,000 youths in Glen Eira (refer your census 2011 webpage) . Each patient at Warrawee/Spurway/Rosstown are subsidising these residents to the tune of $18,500 per person, The medium house price in Glen Eira is $1.2million so aged people do have the assets, so why are we allocating so much to so few. Net assets of the Glen Eira council aged care facilities have fallen from $26.7million in 2010 to $15.8million in 2016 which indicates a deterioration of 69%in less than 7 years which further indicates that the current status quo is untenable. The newly elected councillors need to step up as the old guard have not addressed this issue”.
The individual was then given a pathetic answer and nothing was done, now under secrecy, the council, nearly 2 years later have reacted. Given that this was a PUBLIC question, council reaction should have been: Excellent question from the public gallery, we will undertake a full enquiry and involve public participation, instead; lets sneak it through council via closed doors and don’t tell the public anything. Not very professional but entirely predictable from our councillors.
February 7, 2019 at 1:36 PM
Yes, a public question was asked. But it took an individual with the energy and time to sift through the Annual Report with a fine tooth comb in order to find the buried if not, camouflaged figures. We reiterate: no document has ever been tabled in the past 5 to 8 years that outlines precisely what is happening with aged care – the costs involved; the losses sustained; the numbers of staff & the turnover in this sector, etc. etc.
February 7, 2019 at 1:54 PM
Anonymous, the issue here is how it was done, 30 hours after the initial news, Council is still giving their reason as they believe an aged care specialist could/would do a better job. 3 emails and an express letter still does not outline that decision was made for financial reasons.
February 7, 2019 at 2:45 PM
Totally agree
February 7, 2019 at 4:46 PM
I am horrified at the way this was done. Can’t imagine what it would be like to get an email in the morning telling me that I’m most likely to lose my job or that I will probably sign up with new owners if I’m lucky at greatly reduced wages and time. I keep asking myself what council had to lose if they went public with this years ago? They could still sell if the options were all put out on the table so that everyone could form a view and then decided that the best way to go was to sell the properties and the running of the place. Fair enough that there have been losses as anonymous wrote. Council always says that it’s role is service delivery and if this comes in at a loss the service is still required rather than only looking at the bottom of the financial line. It’s not only the residents in these 3 facilities. It’s also their families and friends plus the workers. Councillors have failed in every respect on this one.
February 7, 2019 at 5:58 PM
Sell off 3 big properties. Wow. Huge boost for council’s pockets so they can waste more and more. Well done. Social responsibility and empathy non existent. Forget honesty and accountability. That went decades ago.
February 8, 2019 at 12:24 AM
Just read very sparse answers on what this money will be spent on. Programs relating to the very vulnerable and isolated community members. Take from one very vulnerable and isolated group already ( the elderly) to give to those who already have many support groups and fair funding?
February 7, 2019 at 11:56 PM
So now our Mayor, Jamie Hymes is giving out advice to a concerned relative of a Warrawee resident on FB Glen Eira Residents Action Group. Mr Mayor wholeheartedly recommends Clairmont Terrace, as his grandmother resided there and loved it. Is Mr Hymes next step, perhaps, to provide the 3 free counselling sessions offered to residents, their relatives and staff who are to stand to lose their jobs in the very near future? Is Jamie Hymes qualified to provide any recommendations as to where this concerned daughter might move her father from Warrawee? This is getting more absurd by the day. Mind you, still no real answers as to why Council made the decision except of the well rehearsed spiel of last two days.
February 8, 2019 at 8:35 AM
These properties should not be sold, they should be retained and added to our public open space port folio.
We hear time and time again from council that we have the lowest amount of open space in Victoria. With what little open space GE has 80% is dedicated to sporting fields, with no hope of growing trees to ameliorate the excessive heat we experiencing and this will only get worse.
These areas would be a welcome addition to our open space. The land near the end of Mackie Road on Centre Road would make a amazing open space link though to Moorleigh Reserve.
February 8, 2019 at 10:10 AM
It seems Council prefers to build pocket parks, at a cost of how much? E.g. Aileen Ave Elsternwick.
February 8, 2019 at 11:57 AM
In between Eskdale and Fitzgibbon in north Caulfield. No one is ever there and 500 metres from Caulfield park.
February 9, 2019 at 1:10 PM
Incompetent management by Glen Eira Council. Thought they were committed to providing a range of housing options for new residents. I don’t think it is about residents at all. As For J Hyams – his usual throw away lines with no basis to what he says.
February 9, 2019 at 4:28 PM
@ February 9, 2019 at 1:10 PM! Pardon? The issues here are current elderly residents, who are still with us, and maybe for a while, current employees, not newcomers to Glen Eira.
February 9, 2019 at 4:38 PM
As for J Hymes’ recommendation of probable placement of a current Warrawee resident, on Facebook’s “Glen Eira Residents’ Action Group” page has been taken off since yesterday morning.