By Casey Neill
The sale of an award-winning Dandenong South business will cost 127 jobs.
Cabrini Health announced on Tuesday 9 May that it had accepted an offer from Spotless Group to buy Cabrini Linen Service (CLS).
CLS is a not-for-profit that handles 200 tonnes of linen each week for the Victorian healthcare, aged care and hospitality industries.
CLS staff will keep their jobs until Spotless officially becomes the new owner on 1 July.
A Cabrini spokeswoman said Spotless had indicated it did not want to take any CLS staff, and that Cabrini would work to find them new jobs within its organisation or beyond.
The Journal has previously reported on CLS’s efforts to employ newly-arrived Australians.
Managing director Ralf Pelz last November said the business started in the Cabrini Hospital basement and had doubled in size in its three years in Dandenong South.
It moved to the suburb with a mission to help the area’s long-term unemployed, at-risk youths, homeless and new migrants.
“I’m happy for people to work with us for a short time and move on to bigger and better pastures,” Mr Pelz said.
Cabrini chief executive Dr Michael Walsh said Spotless would provide linen services to Cabrini under an initial 10-year contract.
“Our staff at CLS have done a great job in competing successfully, but our view is that we will increasingly struggle to compete with the bigger players,” he said.
“The sale makes commercial sense for us.
“Proceeds from the sale will be reinvested across Cabrini’s mission, in particular in health facilities, and new services targeting those in frail health.
“Part of the proceeds from the sale of CLS will allow us to continue to support our other mission-based activities including our asylum seeker and refugee health hub.”
CLS took home the employment award and the overall business of the year title from the Greater Dandenong Chamber of Commerce Awards last November.
“I’m supported by a fantastic team. The team makes the effort and I’m the one that gets the pic taken, so I love it,” managing director Ralf Pelz said at the awards night.
Spotless CEO Martin Sheppard said the contact with Cabrini would immediately double its laundry volumes.
“Spotless is focused on growing our laundry volumes in Victoria – the state-of-the-art facility we are acquiring today will triple our capacity in Victoria and improve our operating efficiency,” he said.
The site has a four-star rating from the Green Council of Australia for good environmental design, operates a co-generation plant and has access to recycled water.
CLS was a finalist at the 2014 Master Builders Excellence in Construction Awards in two categories: Excellence in Construction of Industrial Buildings and Best Sustainable Energy Project.
In July last year the Journal reported that the patron saint of immigrants – Mother Cabrini – inspired and shaped CLS and its efforts to support the community were rewarded on 1 July with the Victoria Day Award for Public and Community Service by a Good Corporate Citizen.
