Health care provider Kaiser Permanente has reached a tentative agreement for a four-year contract with unions covering about 50,000 employees, staving off a planned strike that was expected to affect departments ranging from pharmacies to surgery beginning Monday.
The agreement came after some 35,000 Kaiser workers said they would walk off the job next week, some in support of Pharmacy Guild workers who planned to strike for a week. That prompted Kaiser to alert its members to an indefinite slowdown in services, particularly at outpatient pharmacies.
“This agreement will mean patients will continue to receive the best care, and Alliance members will have the best jobs,” said Hal Ruddick, executive director of the Alliance of Health Care Unions, in a statement released Saturday. “This contract protects our patients, provides safe staffing, and guarantees fair wages and benefits for every Alliance member.”
Members of the economic subcommittee of the Alliance of Health Care Unions — which encompasses 22 unions in all — approved the tentative agreement Saturday, which will now go to union members for voting over the next few weeks. If passed, the agreement would have an effective date of Oct. 1, 2021.
The tentative agreement includes wage increases every year through 2025 for all Alliance employees, carries no reductions to low-cost family medical and dental coverage, and will maintain retirement income benefits and introduce a bonus plan for employees.
“These were challenging negotiations, but this tentative agreement demonstrates the strength of our Labor Management Partnership and the unique success it can achieve when we work together,” said Christian Meisner, senior vice president and chief human resources officer at Kaiser Permanente.
Kaiser serves roughly 12 million people nationwide, about 4.5 million of them living in Northern California.
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