https://www.wbir.com/article/news/local/maryville-blount/blount-memorial-hospital-layoff-85-workers/51-42928553-a4bb-4513-a5ed-9b1673228ae9
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BLOUNT COUNTY, Tenn — A majority of workers who are being laid off at Blount Memorial Hospital are being rehired by a third-party contractor, according to a hospital spokesperson.
Blount Memorial Hospital is laying off 85 workers come May 1, according to a WARN Notice filed with the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development.
According to a spokesperson, Prisma Health, who owns Blount Memorial Hospital, said it is contracting its food and nutrition service and environmental services to "to align operations with the broader health system."
Blount Memorial Hospital provided the following statement:
Prisma Health Blount Memorial Hospital is contracting its Food and Nutrition Services and Environmental Services functions to align operations with the broader health system, effective May 1. Prisma Health has partnered with Compass Healthcare organizations for several years—Morrison Healthcare for Food and Nutrition Services since 2021 and Crothall Healthcare for Environmental Services since 2023. Their expertise has contributed to meaningful improvements in service quality and operational performance across the system.
Local team members have been informed of this transition, and Compass Healthcare and Prisma Health are collaborating to give all frontline and management team members within these areas an opportunity to become Compass Healthcare employees, provided they meet pre‑employment screening requirements.
The vast majority of team members involved with this change have already completed the initial onboarding steps to become Compass Healthcare employees and will remain part of the Blount Memorial team.
The notice was filed March 24. The notice said the company notified the department's Dislocated Workers Unit March 10. The employees do not have a collective bargaining agreement and do not have bumping rights.
Blount Memorial Hospital is the only hospital in Blount County.
More than 2,600 workers at 18 businesses across Tennessee have been laid off so far this year. In 2025, more than 8,800 workers were laid off across 52 businesses. During the first three months of 2025, more than 1,900 workers lost their jobs across 12 businesses across the state.