Hospital takeover by Caritas Regensburg: Works council prevails with its demands  

Created: 05/03/2022, 21:18

By: Stefan Aigner

Contract signing on March 24th: Caritas director Michael Weißmann (left) and district administrator Martin Neumeyer (CSU) seal the “strategic partnership”.

Experts doubt that this deal is sustainable.

© Photo: Caritas Regensburg

The works council and trade unions prevail.

After sharp criticism and the threat of legal action, Caritas and the district gave in on all points.

Regensburg - “Our arguments are objective and argumentatively on the right side.

[…] I think that in the end reason will prevail.” Kelheim district administrator Martin Neumeyer (CSU) recently rejected the criticism of the works council and unions on the takeover deal for the Kelheim hospital in an interview with TVA.

As reported, Caritas Regensburg takes over the majority in the Goldberg Clinic for a symbolic euro.

But all the burdens and risks – a three-digit million amount by 2032 alone – remain with the district, which hardly has any say in the matter.

(By the way: Our brand new Regensburg newsletter will keep you regularly informed about all the important stories from the World Heritage city and the Upper Palatinate. Register here.)

Caritas Regensburg takes over the Goldberg Clinic: the union and works council were right in their criticism

It has now turned out that the works council and verdi obviously hit the mark with their objections.

After several settlement talks, Caritas and the district gave way on all points.

This emerges from a press release that the district of Kelheim published on its website on Friday afternoon.

Specifically, there are several points.

On the one hand, there is now the employment guarantee that was initially publicly announced but, after being checked by the works council, was rather flimsy: it is now to apply to all employees until the end of 2027.

A regulation that would have indirectly forced the staff to switch from the public service tariff to the church AVR is also off the table.

According to this, the salaries of at least a third of the more than 600 employees would have been frozen at the current level if they did not switch to the AVR.

In view of the forthcoming collective bargaining, this would have meant that those affected would have been decoupled from the salary increase as early as next year.

This topic was also cleared up during the agreement talks.

And finally, the works council, which will be replaced in the long term by a church employee representative body with fewer rights, will still be able to have a say in the transition from the Goldberg Clinic to the Caritas Hospital St. Lukas GmbH.

This was also initially refused.

Church takeover of the Kelheim Goldberg Clinic: questionable concept as a basis

The basis of the de facto takeover, which Caritas and the district describe as a "strategic partnership", is a medical concept from Oberender AG.

The controversial consulting company, which is considered to be particularly market-radical, is currently working on behalf of Caritas and, according to insiders, will also play a major role in the future management of the clinic.

Experts to whom our editorial team presented the Oberender concept judged it to be not very sustainable.

It is essentially based on an increase in performance with almost the same nursing staff and, according to previous forecasts, will bring the district a deficit of almost 90 million euros by 2032.

If nothing is done, this deficit will rise to over 125 million euros, claims Oberender.

Takeover of the Goldberg Clinic by Caritas: No more abortions

The mainstay – over 70 percent of the increase in earnings – is to be an external surgical service provider who will receive operating room capacities in the future Caritas hospital in St. Lukas in order to increase the number of occupants there.

It is not yet known who this service provider will be and who will receive the surgical capacities that are in great demand among eligible practices.

The lucrative offer will be awarded privately and has not yet been the subject of public contract negotiations.

However, it should be a provider with the best, also family, relationships with Caritas.

The church took over the Kelheim clinic for unwanted pregnant women.

The Goldberg Clinic was the last hospital in the region where abortions were still carried out if there was a medical indication.

This excludes Caritas as the new sponsor.