Heartland Human Care Services plans to lay off more than 140 workers as it prepares to close several Chicago sites that temporarily house children who come to the U.S. without adults, according to the state.
Heartland plans to close facilities in Rogers Park, Washington Heights and Uptown, according to a letter sent by Heartland late last month to the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity.
Three of the affected locations serve as temporary residences for immigrant youth who are without a parent or guardian, said Michael Brieschke, chairperson for the union for employees of Heartland Human Care Services.
At the residences, the children get educational, medical, mental health and legal services until they can be placed with a family member or friend, Brieschke said.
The facilities are slated to close at the end of March, according to the letter.
Attempts to reach Heartland for comment were not immediately successful Friday afternoon, but Brieschke said the facilities are closing because of a reduction in funding from the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement.
The office’s contract with Heartland, to provide funding, is being renewed but with less funding, though the contract is still being negotiated, Brieschke said.
Attempts to reach the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Administration for Children and Families, which oversee the Office of Refugee Resettlement, were not immediately successful late Friday afternoon.
One of Heartland’s other residential facilities for the children is expanding its capacity and may be able to take in additional children when the other facilities close, Brieschke said.
It’s also possible that about 30% of the workers slated to be laid off may be able to take other positions within the organization, Brieschke said.
Though the residences have been able to serve hundreds of kids – many of whom are teenagers – fewer children have been entering the program more recently, Brieschke said.
Heartland has been one of the larger social service organizations providing the service, he said. Many of the affected employees have been working in the residential program for years because they “really have a heart for these kids coming from third world countries where there’s trauma and war and upheaval,” Brieschke said.
“It’s going to cause certainly a lot of disruption and a lot of uncertainty for these kids going forward,” he said.
Heartland Human Care Services was part of Heartland Alliance until 2024 when Heartland Alliance broke up into four separate entities: Heartland Alliance Health, Heartland Alliance International, Heartland Human Care Services and the National Immigrant Justice Center, Brieschke said.
