Prime cutting jobs at Saint Joseph Medical Center in Joliet

Prime Healthcare on Friday said it is consolidating positions within the eight hospitals in Illinois that it acquired in March, including Saint Joseph Medical Center.

A spokesperson said the consolidation could affect about 20 nonunion jobs at the Joliet hospital.

The Joliet hospital has more than 1,340 employees.

“No union positions are being affected by these changes,” according to a statement from Prime. “Comparable positions are being offered, and all those involved are being invited to apply for any of the more than 900 open positions across our Prime Illinois facilities – including union positions."

The positions being eliminated are “not directly providing patient care,” according to the statement.

The statement said that Prime has created 1,000 new jobs at the Illinois hospitals, which employed 13,000 workers at the time of the acquisition.

The hospitals acquired from Ascension had losses of $200 million in the past year, according to the statement.

A separate statement from Prime on Thursday said $90 million of those losses were at Saint Joseph Medical Center in Joliet.