Amidst the upcoming three-day strike by Kaiser Permanente healthcare employees, anticipated to be the largest of its kind in U.S. history, contract negotiations between the provider and union representatives carried on throughout Tuesday, with hopes of avoiding the strike.
As of late Tuesday afternoon, a Kaiser spokesperson informed City News Service that the talks were still ongoing and could potentially stretch into the night.
On Monday, Kaiser officials released a statement stating that their leaders were making progress in their discussions with the Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions.
“A strike is not inevitable, nor is it warranted. Our objective is to reach a fair and equitable agreement, strengthening Kaiser Permanente as a top workplace and ensuring affordable and easily accessible high-quality care for our members,” said the spokesperson.
However, the union proceeded with their plans for picketing, scheduled to commence at 6 a.m. on Wednesday across various Kaiser locations in California and several other states, expecting the participation of 75,000 Kaiser workers.
“Kaiser executives are refusing to listen and are engaging in bad faith bargaining regarding the solutions needed to address the short-staffing crisis,” said Jessica Cruz, a licensed vocational nurse at Kaiser Los Angeles Medical Center, one of the planned picket sites, in a statement released by the union on Monday.
“I witness my patients’ frustrations when I have to rush through their care. That’s not the level of care I want to provide. We are burning out while trying to fulfill the roles of two or three people, and our patients suffer from Kaiser’s inadequate staffing,” she added.
According to the union, pickets will also take place at Kaiser facilities in Los Angeles, San Diego, Riverside, and Orange counties. In addition, picketing is planned at Kaiser facilities in Colorado, Washington, Oregon, Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C., as stated by the union coalition.
The workers’ contract expired on Saturday, but bargaining efforts continued throughout the weekend and into Monday and Tuesday.
The strike would include licensed vocational nurses, emergency department technicians, radiology technicians, ultrasound sonographers, teleservice representatives, respiratory therapists, X-ray technicians, certified nursing assistants, dietary services, behavioral health workers, surgical technicians, pharmacy technicians, transporters, home health aides, phlebotomists, and medical assistants, according to union officials.
The union accused Kaiser of cutting employee performance bonuses, failing to protect workers against subcontracting, offering wages that do not keep up with inflation, and inadequately maintaining staffing levels.
Contrary to these allegations, Kaiser stated that it is offering “across the board wage increases,” with a minimum wage starting at $21 per hour. The healthcare provider also denied claims of reducing performance bonuses and increasing premiums unrelated to healthcare costs or improvements in care.
“For Southern California, where our wages significantly exceed market rates, we are offering a 10% wage increase over four years, in addition to lump sum bonuses of 4%, ensuring competitive compensation for our employees,” Kaiser stated.
In their Monday statement, Kaiser assured that they have plans in place to continue providing high-quality care in the event of a strike occurring this week.
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