Committee presses for protections for employees during clinic transition

Committee members raised questions about how employee benefits and retirement accounts would be handled during the transition. The executive director acknowledged differences in vesting and retirement tiers and said municipal plans are largely portable; she noted many employees are not yet vested and that certain accounts (for example, some health- or retirement-account arrangements) can roll to another plan.

The executive director said she wants to "keep the employees whole" through the transition and discussed tying periodic MOA review to the grant cycle so employee-related issues are revisited at planned intervals. Committee members requested that the MOA include language or process steps to ensure employees do not lose accrued benefits and to explain rollovers and portability options; staff agreed to provide clearer guidance in the next draft.