We continue good faith efforts to reach a new agreement

Overview

This past week with the expiration of the current NUHW contract, Kaiser Permanente offered the union a series of significant proposals. Examples include:

• Strong across-the-board wage increases for 4 years totaling 18%, with 5% (year 1), 5% (year 2), 4% (year 3), and 4% (year 4). We also added a longevity step of 2% at 25 years.
• Enhancements to the Retiree Medical Plan with improved Health Reimbursement Account (HRA) and HRA supplement contributions.
• 6 hours per week for activities such as planning, preparation, and care coordination, with 4 of these hours protected.

Each of these proposals addresses interests the union has told us the majority of our mental health professionals see as vital to their professional and personal quality of life. Despite this, the union has thus far declined to offer counterproposals in the above referenced areas other than the Retiree Medical Plan. The lack of meaningful engagement by NUHW in these areas is greatly disappointing and does nothing to move the parties toward a timely agreement.

Details about the October 4 session include:

• On the issue of Protected Time for Planning and Preparation — which we know is an especially important issue to our therapists — the union also declined to offer a counterproposal.
• The union initiated discussion about Kaiser Permanente’s recent Across-the-Board Wage Increase proposal but declined to provide a counterproposal.
• The union also initiated discussion about staffing and pensions without bringing forward any proposal. As a reminder, since the start of bargaining, Kaiser Permanente has maintained its position on its industry-competitive defined contribution plan in which Kaiser Permanente contributes up to 9% of annual salary into the plan. 
• Kaiser Permanente presented the union with an incentive proposal discussed during the afternoon session.
• The only proposal the union brought forward was a counterproposal on changing certain language in the Retiree Medical Program. Kaiser Permanente is evaluating this proposal.
• Rather than move the bargaining process forward with meaningful counterproposals, the union appears to be slow-walking the process as it makes continued threats of a strike.

The remaining scheduled bargaining dates are October 7, 8, and 10.

We look forward to those sessions and ask that NUHW meaningfully engage with us on the proposals on the table. The union’s continual threats of a strike, coupled with their refusal to make any meaningful movement on the subjects they have deemed “strike issues,” are extremely concerning. This ongoing lack of actual bargaining and engagement by the leaders of NUHW is not in the best interest of our mental health care and addiction services professionals, or the interests of the Kaiser Permanente patients they care for.

We are calling on NUHW leaders to engage with us to reach a mutually beneficial agreement without disruptions to patient care.

Click here if you want to know more details about our current strong and responsive offer to the NUHW bargaining team.