TRUMBULL COUNTY, OH - After weeks of trying to get answers, employees at the Insight Trumbull County hospitals are still left in the dark. With no clear picture for what the future holds, they're being forced to look for help meeting their basic needs. 

Members of the Trumbull Community Action Program (TCAP) are helping over 50 employees who are without jobs since the hospitals shut down without warning in March. 

“It's just good to know that we do have other agencies within our community that are assisting with needs, as far as past due rent, utilities, food,” said Cedric Brown, community services program director at Trumbull Community Action Program. “We know that we can be of assistance right now. And we know that some of them weren’t able to pay their rent. And we want to make sure income eligible clients are able to receive rental assistance.”

Since the sudden closure, many employees are dealing with hardships. Hospital employees told 21 News they are still waiting for their paid time off, unemployment and their full pay. 

“I’m told they received their paychecks from the last week of pay that was owed to us. However, there were several mistakes on it. And when we point those out to everybody, they give us an email address that everybody goes to, and nobody gets answered,” said Tom Connelly, president of AFSCME Local 226.

Chrissy Lewis, coordinator of Service Employees International Union District 119, said she knows employees who worked at the hospitals for decades, and were getting ready to retire. 

Lewis also represents an employee who needed to cancel heart surgery for her spouse.

The unions representing the hospital workers have weekly calls with Insight. While getting some answers, there is still a lot of uncertainty.

Connelly was told the hospital will reopen soon, but was not told when.

“I’m going to lose most of my members here while they’re waiting to go back to work. We’re already losing a lot of the doctors,” said Connelly.

Connelly also pointed out that the contracts to some of the other unions representing hospitals expire this year. 

“Their contract is set to expire in June, and despite us asking them to extend their contract, they refuse to do so. And that makes me really think they’re not operating in good faith,” said Connelly.

21 News has reached out to Franklin on more than one occasion for an update. He has not responded.