BARGAINING UPDATE
February 14, 2025
Kaiser Permanente updates key offer in latest proposal
The new offer increases protected time.
On February 12, we held our 25th bargaining session with NUHW. In bargaining, Kaiser Permanente presented a counterproposal about non-direct patient care time that responds to the union's proposal for 7 hours while ensuring we can meet our members’ needs for access to mental health care.
Our counterproposal increases time for activities such as planning, preparation, coordination, and administrative work to a total of 7 hours per week — 5 hours protected and 2 hours unprotected. This proposal matches the union’s last proposal for 7 total hours but differs in that the union opposes any unprotected hours, a position we have demonstrated will negatively affect patient access to care. We also responded to a series of other economic and noneconomic proposals.
Our offer on the table delivers excellent compensation to our NUHW-represented employees. It has no takeaways, increases wages, and enhances the comprehensive benefits our mental health professionals enjoy. It also includes improved employer-paid basic life insurance and accidental death and dismemberment benefits for individuals working 32 hours or more per week.
We continue to respect and value our mental health and addiction medicine professionals. Our goal remains to ensure our members have timely access to high-quality, affordable mental health care. We’re constantly analyzing the best ways to achieve that goal. We look forward to the union's response to this new proposal and other outstanding proposals when we reconvene on February 17.
Our next scheduled dates for bargaining are February 17 and March 6.
