Glen Haven Manor is buying a house strategically located within proximity of the long-term care facility that will be used for newcomers both from other countries and also from other provinces or other parts of Nova Scotia as a way to boost its recruitment efforts.
The house will be used as a landing point for immigrant staff new to the area, as well as having the potential to be used for locums who could be hired for short-term replacement. Anyone using the house would be required to pay rent. Glen Haven currently leases a house for similar purposes that has proven very successful and feasible.
“The vast majority of our staff are from the local area,” explains CEO Lisa M. Smith. “It is a reality that the health-care sector, especially continuing care, is facing serious labour shortages as are many other employers in Pictou County and throughout Nova Scotia. We are proactively addressing this increasing shortage to assure the needs of our residents are always at the forefront. It is a winning combination to hire newcomers in parallel with hiring local. Building diversity both through scope of skills and varying cultures makes us stronger in so many ways. We cannot sit back and wait for a staffing crisis to happen.”
In 2019, Glen Haven hired 61 staff – 57 were local and four were newcomers.
“This house is an opportunity to find temporary housing solutions for immigrant employees or those from outside the region who find a lack of suitable rental properties a barrier to coming to our region,” adds Smith.
Glen Haven Manor is working in partnership with the Pictou County Regional Enterprise Network and Safe Harbour that offers settlement support services to newcomers for Glen Haven and other employers in the region hiring international workers.
“Glen Haven Manor is taking a leadership role in the area of addressing labour shortages,” says Sarah MacIntosh-Wiseman, CEO of the Pictou County REN. “Employers in other communities are also recognizing the need to come up with creative housing solutions in order to attract new employees, but it is exciting to see that Glen Haven Manor has found a way to provide an immediate solution. The model that Glen Haven is designing, in partnership with community partners, may well become a model that other rural communities and employers will be able to follow, down the road.”
The Municipal Housing Corporation Act is the legislation under which Glen Haven was founded. This act requires the four governing municipalities – New Glasgow, Stellarton, Trenton and Westville – to be aware of and to endorse any Glen Haven mortgaged properties. Glen Haven Manor will be the legal owner of the property.
Glen Haven board chair John Guthro, New Glasgow deputy mayor, says, “As a board we are very pleased with the progressive and forward thinking that has been forth to support an innovative, successful recruitment strategy for Glen Haven Manor. It is gratifying to see the residents so well cared for and to know that the organization is doing everything possible to attract and retain qualified staff to assure this standard is maintained.”
