Unions representing health care workers at Kaiser Permanente in Hawaii said Monday morning that the majority of their members have voted to authorize a strike.
The vote signals the possibility that thousands of health care workers, including hospital aides, medical assistants, nurses, and lab technicians, among others, could walk off the job if no agreement is reached by the end of month when contracts expire.
Together, UNITE HERE Local 5 and Hawaii Nurses and Healthcare Professionals represent more than 3,000 Kaiser workers in Hawaii who said their key priorities are safer staffing levels and fair wage increases.
Local 5 said that local bargaining began in April, and national bargaining began in May with Kaiser, the largest non-for-profit health care system in the U.S.
“The results of our strike authorization vote make it clear, we’re ready to do whatever it takes to settle a new contract that puts our patients first and addresses our staffing and workload concerns,” said Cade Watanabe, Local 5 financial secretary-treasurer, in a news release. “We’re proud of the level of care we provide our community everyday and Kaiser remains a great place to get quality care — if you can get it; but why should Hawaii health care workers be compensated less than our counterparts on the mainland?”
Kaiser officials responded by saying that since May, the company has been negotiating in good faith with the Alliance of Health Care Unions, which includes Local 5 and HNHP.
Kaiser said its current offer includes strong, across-the-board wage increases totaling 20% over four years and enhancements to generous benefits and retirement programs it already provides, such as retiree medical coverage and increased investments in education resources.
“Our offer provides wage increases so that our employees represented by Alliance unions in Hawaii are paid at or above the market level,” said Kaiser.
Earlier, after workers held rallies Friday to call attention to their frustration with contract negotiations, Kaiser had expressed disappointment that union leadership would choose to authorize a strike, which could disrupt care, while the parties are actively working toward an agreement.
“We believe that through good faith bargaining and mutual respect, we can reach solutions that benefit our employees and help ensure our members and patients will continue to have access to high-quality, affordable health care,” said Kaiser in a statement.
Kaiser added, “It’s important to understand that a strike authorization vote is a common bargaining tactic used to rally union members. It does not mean a strike is inevitable and operations at our facilities continue as usual.”
Under current labor laws, a union is required to provide at least 10 days’ notice before initiating a strike. Kaiser said as of Monday, no such notice had been received.
“We take any threat to disrupt care for our members seriously,” said Kaiser, “and have robust plans to ensure our members and patients will have continued access to high-quality care in the event of a work stoppage.”
Separately, on Friday, members of the United Nurses Associations of California/Union of Health Care Professionals (UNAC/UHCP) voted to authorize a strike. UNAC represents 30,000 Kaiser health care professionals, including about 250 registered nurses, pharmacists, rehab therapists, and registered nurse anesthetists in Hawaii.
Unionized Kaiser nurses in Oregon, Washington, Maryland and Washington, D.C., also have voted to authorize strikes.
“Kaiser is betting we won’t unite and push for the change that patients need,” said UNAC/UHCP President Charmaine Morales, in a news release. “This overwhelming vote proves them wrong. When we stand together, Kaiser will have no choice but to recognize the need to value our labor and ensure safe staffing and care.”
Staffing issues, meanwhile, have become a common battle cry among unionized health care workers across Hawaii and the U.S., with many saying they are burdened with too many patients to care for at once.
Mary Taboniar, a Kaiser hospital aide said the chronic understaffing is frustrating. She has done double shifts and at times found herself to be the only one working on the floor.
“We feel like we are short-prioritized, short- respected,” she said. “I love my job as a hospital aide. It’s rewarding to take care of patients, but short staffing is happening almost every day. We are burned out and overworked.”
Diana Echalas, a licensed practical nurse in Wailuku for 21 years, said she was ready to strike in order to get Kaiser to take short staffing seriously.
“Kaiser needs to do more to make sure we have the proper amount of staff and we are able to retain that staff,” she said in a statement. “Constantly working short-staffed is exhausting and it is demoralizing to feel like we can’t give our patients the best care possible.”
Kaiser, however, said union claims about staffing do not reflect the facts. Last year, Kaiser said it hired over 6,400 new employees, including more than 1,600 represented by the Alliance.
The turnover rate among Alliance-represented employees is just 8%, Kaiser said, compared to the industry average of 20%.
“Our evidence-based staffing approach is tailored to patient needs and allows real-time adjustments, ensuring safer, more responsive care,” said Kaiser. “This flexibility is especially vital in Hawaii’s unique, geographically isolated environment, enabling us to effectively manage emergencies and maintain timely access to care.”
Demands for safe staffing and better nurse-to-patient staffing ratios have been brought up during contract negotiations time and again for nurses from the Kapi‘olani Medical Center for Women &Children to Wilcox Medical Center and The Queen’s Health Systems.
Nurses at Wilcox Medical Center on Kauai held a three-day strike, particularly over staffing in the medical-surgical unit, before agreeing on a new contract with Hawaii Pacific Health in April.
Queen’s narrowly averted a strike for its two Oahu campuses in January by reaching an agreement in the final hours. In August, Queen’s averted yet another strike at North Hawaii Community Hospital, where nurses were seeking improved staffing ratios and wages matching their counterparts at Queen’s Oahu hospitals.
Kaiser workers held rallies on Friday, including at Kaiser Mapunapuna, Kaiser Wailuku and the Kaiser Kona Clinic to call attention to their plight. They held signs that said, “Stand Up For Better Patient Care” and “Hawaii Is Not Second Class.”
Local 5 said 97% of its members and 89% of HNHP’s members voted to authorize strikes after contracts expire Sept. 30.
Local 5 represents more than 1,900 Kaiser workers, including hospital aides, medical assistants, pharmacy techs, dietary specialists, housekeeping, and more. HNHP represents 1,200 Kaiser Permanente workers, including nurses, respiratory therapists, and lab professionals.
Source: The Garden Island
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