Country’s largest hospital systems fail to produce new contract
Will Kessler
Daily Caller News Foundation
Health care workers in five states began striking Wednesday morning as negotiations with one of the country’s largest hospital systems continue to fail to produce a new contract.
The Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions (CKPU) sent 75,000 workers on strike at a top insurer and health care system operator, Kaiser Permanente, amid complaints over low wages and staffing shortages, according to The Associated Press. Hospitals will remain open during the strike as doctors are not participating and thousands of temporary workers have been brought in to fill the gaps.
“Given the urgency of Kaiser’s staffing crisis, frontline healthcare workers are ready to sit down with Kaiser executives whenever they’re ready to bargain in good faith — including up until the scheduled strike start time,” Caroline Lucas, executive director of the CKPU, said in a statement. “However, no agreement can be made until Kaiser executives stop bargaining in bad faith and committing unfair labor practices. Tens of thousands of frontline Kaiser healthcare workers across the country are ready for an unfair labor practice strike at 6 a.m. today. Patients and workers need dramatic action now to solve the Kaiser short staffing crisis and to ensure our patients’ safety.”
Those striking include vocational nurses, home health aides, ultrasound sonographers, and technicians for radiology, x-rays and more, according to the AP. Kaiser Permanente operates 39 hospitals across the country and provides insurance coverage to nearly 13 million people.
The union is asking for a $25 per hour minimum wage and 7% wage hikes for two years, then 6.25% wage hikes for the two years after that, according to the AP. Kaiser Permanente has offered a $21 to $23 per hour wage increase, depending on the location.
The union approved the strike to last for three days in California, Colorado, Oregon and Washington and only one day in Virginia and Washington, D.C., according to the AP.
The United Auto Workers are also currently on strike as contract negotiations with Ford, General Motors and Stellantis continue to fail to reach an agreement. The union has only sent workers at 43 manufacturing plants on strike, sparing the rest in a strategy to apply incremental pressure on the companies while not exhausting their strike fund.
CKPU deferred the Daily Caller News Foundation to its previous statement. Kaiser Permanente did not immediately respond to a request to comment.
This story originally was published by the Daily Caller News Foundation.
Also read:
- Let’s Go Washington prepares to gather signatures for income tax repeal effort
Let’s Go Washington needs 308,911 signatures by July 2 to put the income tax before voters in November. - Vancouver Police arrest additional suspect in child molestation investigation
William J. Sneiderwine, 61, faces conspiracy and evidence tampering charges in the Wilmington child molestation case. - Letter: ‘Once you decide your political opponents are sick, you don’t have to listen to anything they say’
Camas resident Tony Teso argues Ken Vance’s column reframes political disagreement as mental illness to avoid engaging on substance. - WDFW offers tips after resident reports a cougar sighting in Vancouver city park
Mitch Ratigan was 20–30 feet from a cougar at Ellsworth Springs Park before grabbing his dog and running. - Opinion: Greg Johnson’s $2 million contract delivered a huge mess
Johnson’s $1.9M pay coincided with IBR costs tripling and construction timeline doubling to 20 years. - POLL: What issue should be the top priority for Southwest Washington’s next member of Congress?
Sen. John Braun criticized WA’s new income tax while outlining his congressional priorities in Vancouver. - Opinion: The Democrats’ disproportionate response to Trump
Ken Vance argues Democratic hostility toward Trump has crossed from politics into dangerous derangement.
