Kaiser Permanente healthcare strike could disrupt vaccine and prescription access

The Kaiser strike is expected to span three days, as healthcare workers join picket lines across the country to protest staffing shortages

75,000 Kaiser Permanente workers are officially on strike

The largest health worker strike went into effect on Wednesday morning, as an agreement between 75,000 healthcare workers and Kaiser Permanente hospitals has yet to be reached.

The strike began on 4 October at 6am PT as the workers — nurses, radiology technicians, pharmacists, sonographers and others — are striking “to protest unfair labor practices and unsafe staffing levels,” according to the latest release from SEIU-UHW, a union that is part of the Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions.

The strike will take place across the country in California, Colorado, Washington, Oregon, Virginia and Washington DC and is expected to last three days.

The strike comes after failed negotiations following the workers’ contract expiring on 30 September.

Early on Wednesday, Kaiser Permanente also issued a statement on the progress, saying the two parties are “still at the bargaining table, having worked through the night in an effort to reach an agreement. There has been a lot of progress, with agreements reached on several specific proposals late Tuesday.”

But the coalition was singing to a different tune. “No agreement can be made until Kaiser executives stop bargaining in bad faith and committing unfair labor practices,” said, Caroline Lucas, executive director of the coalition.

The jury is still out on the exact effects the walkout has on patient care, although reports predict vaccine access, prescriptions being filled, and lab testing could be disrupted.

Key Points

• What is the strike about?
• Who is going on strike at Kaiser Permanente?
• When is the Kaiser strike and when does it end?

[6 October 2023 08:00 · Kelly Rissman]

ICYMI: Timeline leading up to the strike

2019: when the last contract was negotiated between the Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions and Kaiser

2020: the Covid-19 pandemic rocked the healthcare system, apparently worsening the existing understaffing crisis at Kaiser Permanente, the coalition said

30 September, 2023: contract between the coalition and Kaiser expired

4 October: the coalition launched the largest healthcare worker strike in US history

5 October: both sides say that a deal has not yet been reached

[6 October 2023 09:00 · Kelly Rissman]

What is the Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions?

The coalition is made up a number of unions — 85,000 members — across the country at Kaiser facilities. Here are the unions, where they are located and who they represent:

• SEIU-UHW — California: Membership: 57,443 — Medical assistants, medical social workers, information technology workers, environmental service workers, surgical technicians, food professionals, unit assistants and other health care professionals
• SEIU Local 1199NW — Seattle, Washington: Membership: 2,917 — Registered nurses, physical and occupational therapists, social workers and service professionals
• SEIU Local 121RN — Southern California: Membership: 354 — Registered nurses
• SEIU Local 105 — Greater Denver area, Boulder, Colorado Springs, Fort Collins, Pueblo: Membership: 3,050 — Health care and property care workers, including member services representatives, licensed practical nurses, coding technicians, receptionists, cardiology technicians, pharmacy clerks and couriers
• SEIU Local 49 — Oregon and Southwest Washington: Membership: 4,800 — Service and clerical workers, including environmental services, gardeners, food service workers, cashiers, lab techs, dental clerks, phlebotomists, gardeners, certified nursing assistants, clerks, schedulers, coordinators, and more
• OPEIU Local 50 — Hawaii: Membership: 50 — Registered Nurses
• OPEIU Local 30 — San Diego County: Membership: 4,916 — Administrative, service, maintenance, and accounting workers, including licensed vocational nurses (LVN), physical therapy assistants, medical transcriptionists, orthopedic technicians, ophthalmic technologists
• OPEIU Local 29 — Northern California: Membership: 2,550 — Administrative, service, maintenance, and accounting workers
• OPEIU Local 8 — Seattle, Washington: Membership: 1,044 — Offices, hospitals, clinics, social services, housing, home care, credit unions, the insurance industry, and the public sector
• OPEIU Local 2 — District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia: Membership: 4,763 — Health care and administrative; including member services representatives, coding technicians, receptionists, licensed practical nurses, clinical assistants, surgical assistants, urgent care technologists, cardiology technologists, physical therapist assistants, radiology technologists, MRI technologists, bone density technologists, sonographers, laboratory clerks, pathology assistants, lab specimen processors, ophthalmology assistants, opticians, optometrists, pharmacists, clinical pharmacists, pharmacy clerks, telemedicine support, referral management assistant, SNF placement coordinator, facility services assistant, secretary, accountants
• IFPTE Local 20 — Northern California: Membership: 1,517 — Clinical laboratory scientists, medical laboratory technicians, optometrists and optometric assistants, genetic counselors, home health physical, occupational, and speech therapists

[6 October 2023 10:00 · Kelly Rissman]

View from the picket line

[6 October 2023 11:00 · Kelly Rissman]

Frontline Kaiser worker describes the long-term short staffing crisis at the healthcare giant

Tami Chew has worked for Kaiser Permanente for 17 years. She previously worked as a pharmacy technician and now works as a health plan representative at Kaiser Roseville, which includes helping patients “who reach a point in their care where they’re not sure what to do, like when they have a difficult diagnosis or need a second opinion.”

The strikers went into effect on Wednesday, with health workers’ major focus on solving the staffing shortage that pervades the Kaiser system. Although the Covid-19 pandemic overwhelmed facilities and workers over the world, Ms Chew said that the shortage at Kaiser began before the coronavirus spread.

Read more.

[6 October 2023 12:00 · Kelly Rissman]

Statement from a Kaiser nurse

"Kaiser executives are refusing to listen to us and are bargaining in bad faith over the solutions we need to end the Kaiser short-staffing crisis," said Jessica Cruz, a licensed vocational nurse at Kaiser Los Angeles Medical Center.

“I see my patients’ frustrations when I have to rush them and hurry on to my next patient. That’s not the care I want to give. We’re burning ourselves out trying to do the jobs of two or three people, and our patients suffer when they can’t get the care they need due to Kaiser’s short-staffing."

[6 October 2023 13:00 · Kelly Rissman]

California Congresswoman stands in solidarity with striking workers in her state

[6 October 2023 14:00 · Kelly Rissman]

The Kaiser wage gap

The coalition, in August, pushed for a $25 hourly minimum wage, with pay increases over time.

Kaiser said that its current offer includes across-the-board wage increases from 12.5 to 16 per cent over four years. The proposed minimum wage would start at $21 in Washington, Oregon, Colorado, and DC and $23 in California, with an increase over the next four years of the contract.

As of Wednesday afternoon, negotiations continue.

Read the full story between the parties’ differences here