Largest single-employer union negotiation in the U.S. inches closer to strike over unfair labor practices

Healthcare workers say Kaiser’s refusal to acknowledge under-staffing, decline in patient care is driving a growing crisis 

SAN DIEGO, CA – 4,500 San Diego healthcare workers who are part of OPEIU Local 30 announced on Wednesday that they have voted to authorize a strike to protest unfair labor practices by a margin of 99% if no agreement is reached by September 30. Simultaneously,  2,500 healthcare workers belonging to OPEIU Local 29 in the Bay Area have also announced their authorization of a strike underscoring the widespread concerns of short staffing and unfair labor practices with an equally commanding margin of 94% should negotiations remain unresolved by the same September 30th deadline.

This comes on the heels of nearly 70,000 SEIU and OPEIU members in Colorado, California, Oregon, Southwest Washington, D.C., Virginia, and Maryland voting to authorize a strike at Kaiser Permanente in the past two weeks. These two decisive votes of OPEIU Local 30 and OPEIU Local 29 are the last to be completed before the coalition enters the final scheduled negotiations with Kaiser, concluding this Friday, September 22. 

This could be the largest healthcare strike in U.S. history, as workers say Kaiser executives refuse to acknowledge the decline in patient service and care and negate the struggle of the workforce to keep up with the high cost of living in areas where Kaiser operates.

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Largest single-employer union negotiation in the U.S. inches closer to strike over unfair labor practices

Healthcare workers say Kaiser’s refusal to acknowledge under-staffing, decline in patient care is driving a growing crisis 

WASHINGTON, D.C. – 3,800 D.C., Virginia, and Maryland healthcare workers who are part of OPEIU Local 2 announced on Monday that they have voted to authorize a strike to protest unfair labor practices by a margin of 98 percent if no agreement is reached by September 30. This comes on the heels of nearly 65,000 SEIU members in Colorado, California, Oregon, and Southwest Washington voting to authorize a strike at Kaiser Permanente in the past two weeks. 

This could be the largest healthcare strike in U.S. history, as workers say Kaiser executives refuse to acknowledge the decline in patient service and care and negate the struggle of the workforce to keep up with the high cost of living in areas where Kaiser operates.

“We’ve been raising the alarm about patient safety, but Kaiser isn’t hearing us. Kaiser executives keep refusing to listen to frontline healthcare workers on the issues that impact the care of our patients, and they’re violating the law by failing to bargain in good faith,” said Katrina Schaetz, OB-GYN clinical assistant. “We are standing up for more staff and better patient care. If Kaiser doesn't stop committing unfair labor practices, healthcare workers are prepared to go on strike.”

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Tens of thousands of workers at Kaiser Permanente hospitals and clinics across the country are voting on whether to authorize a strike. The Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions, which includes a dozen local unions, said a strike would start no earlier than Oct. 1. More than 80,000 employees are represented by the coalition, including the Office and Professional Employees (OPEIU), which represents some 12,000 Kaiser employees. If a strike moves forward, it would be the largest strike of health care workers in the history of the country. Union members are pushing for safe staffing levels to protect nurses and patients.

“Patient care is in crisis at Kaiser Permanente,” said Linda Bridges, president of OPEIU Local 2 in Silver Spring, Maryland. “Staffing was decimated during the pandemic and it has not gotten any better. The problem we’re dealing with is Kaiser is not hearing us. Kaiser can and must do better....They need to stop the unfair labor practices and address the healthcare staffing needs now.”

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