Thousands of Kaiser Permanente healthcare workers in Maryland, Washington D.C. and Virginia have voted to strike if their demands aren’t met by Sept. 30 in what could become the largest healthcare strike in U.S. history. Union demands center around understaffing – both retaining and recruiting additional staff – to properly serve patients’ needs.
Around 98% of the 3,800 unionized workers voted for the strike, according to a union press release. The healthcare workers are represented by the Office and Professional Employees International Union (OPEIU) Local 2.
The vote allows up to a two-week-long strike after Sept. 30. This comes after 65,000 Kaiser Permanente workers in California, Colorado, Oregon and Southwest Washington also voted to strike.
Unsafe staffing levels is one of the main concerns for workers, according to the union. Since the COVID-19 pandemic the facilities have had “chronic” understaffing levels that can lead to long wait times and rushed care, according to the release.
“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,” Katrina Schaetz, OB-GYN Clinical Assistant, said in the release.
Instead of resolving the understaffing problem, Kaiser is making changes that could make the problem worse, according to the union.
The company is proposing to slash performance bonuses for frontline workers to benefit managers and executives, remove protections against subcontracting and outsourcing jobs, have uncompetitive starting salaries and not raise wages to keep up with the rising cost of living, according to the union.
Kaiser can afford to do better, union releases say. The company saw a $24 billion profit in the past five years.
While the strike is a sacrifice, the union believes that without this healthcare workers and patients will suffer long-term effects in patient care and low wages.
There is a national bargaining session with Kaiser scheduled for Sept. 21 and Sept. 22.
