SAN DIEGO — The Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions which represents over 75,000 healthcare workers in seven states and Kaiser Permanente are in last-minute negotiations Tuesday morning in hopes of averting a strike.
If they don't reach an agreement during those last-minute talks, thousands of jobs at Kaiser facilities across the nation, including ones in San Diego will be affected.
Workers are protesting that Kaiser is committing unfair labor practices and that understaffing is boosting Kaiser's profits but hurting patients.
"Across the country, people working in health care during the pandemic and in its aftermath have faced the toughest challenges that anyone has had to deal with. Health care is still under great stress. More than 5 million people have left their health care jobs and burnout is at record highs," Kaiser said in a statement Tuesday. "Every health care provider in the nation has been facing staffing shortages and fighting burnout. We are all struggling to catch up with care that was delayed, and we have had fewer people to help carry the work forward.
It all started back in April, when the Coalition of Kaiser Permanente unions began its national bargaining process ahead of the September contract expiration. Workers were not pleased by what was being bargained.
On September 22nd they gave Kaiser executives a 10-day notice for an unfair labor practice strike that could happen Wednesday.
Now, Kaiser workers said there are a series of unfair labor practices that range from long wait times, to mistaken diagnoses, and neglect.
Kaiser executives from the San Diego facilities released a recent statement where they said patient safety and providing high-quality care remain their top priorities.
They said they were disappointed by some of the false narratives the union is circulating about staffing. They added that Kaiser Permanente medical centers in San Diego are fully staffed.
"Patient safety and providing high-quality care remain our top priorities. Our staffing approach reflects our shared commitment to ensuring every Kaiser Permanente patient receives extraordinary care every time and in every place," Kaiser said in a statement on September 19. "We are disappointed by some of the false narratives the union is circulating about our staffing. To be clear, all Kaiser Permanente Medical Centers in San Diego are fully staffed in accordance with the State of California's mandated staffing levels for nurses. Kaiser Permanente has consistently been in full compliance with those levels, and in fact, we regularly staff at a higher level than the state's mandate."
If workers do strike, it is expected to last for three days, and it could be the largest healthcare worker strike in U.S. history.