SPOKANE, Wash. – Kaiser Permanente workers from multiple regions will begin a three-day strike on Oct. 4, but Eastern Washington workers will not be among them.
According to Linnae Riesen, Senior Manager at Kaiser Permanent Washington, their contract expires on Oct. 31. Coalition-represented employees have only approved a vote on a potential strike, and have not yet authorized one. A vote on the matter is scheduled for Oct. 12.
A small number of southwestern Washington employees are part of the Northwest Kaiser Permanent Region in Oregon and will be joining the strike, but no workers in Eastern Washington will be walking out this week.
Riesen stated Kaiser Permanente leaders and union members in Washington were bargaining on Monday and agreed to meet midday on Tuesday to reach an agreement, if needed.
Kaiser Permanent Washington addressed the issue in a statement:
Kaiser Permanente Washington is committed to bargaining in good faith to reach a fair and equitable agreement that supports our employees and patients and furthers our mission of providing high-quality care.
Our priority is to reach an agreement that ensures we can provide market-competitive pay and benefits. We are confident we’ll reach an agreement before our regional agreement expires on October 31 that strengthens our position as a best place to work and ensures that the high-quality care our members expect from us remains affordable and easy to access.
We greatly respect and value our employees who deliver on our mission every day and look forward to continuing our conversation at the bargaining table.
