Workplace health and safety and chronic short staffing cited as reasons
Roseville, Calif.- UPDATED – Strike Averted: Northern California Kaiser Nurses reach tentative agreement
In a historic year for nurses strikes, more than 21,000 registered nurses and nurse practitioners at 21 Kaiser Permanente facilities will hold a two-day strike on Monday, Nov. 21 and Tuesday, Nov. 22, to protest what is viewed as the administration's refusal to address their ongoing concerns about workplace health and safety and chronic short staffing, announced California Nurses Association/National Nurses United (CNA/NNU).
The nurses, who work at 21 Kaiser facilities in Northern California, notified their employer on Nov. 10 that they would strike, making this one of the biggest private-sector nurses strikes in U.S. history. Locally affected locations include Roseville and Sacramento.
Near unanimous strike authorization vote
This 10-days' notice of their strike follows a nearly unanimous strike authorization vote earlier this month. Nurses always give at least 10 days of advance notice to the hospital to allow for alternative plans to be made for patient care. On Sept. 1, nurses at Kaiser Los Angeles Medical Center joined their Northern California nurse colleagues in holding informational pickets for a total of more than 22,000 nurses. Nurses at Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles Medical Center will hold a two-day strike on Nov. 21 and 22.
Kaiser registered nurses and nurse practitioners have been in negotiations for a new contract with little to no movement on key issues. The nurses in Northern California have been negotiating since June 2022. The RNs and NPs urge management to invest in nursing staff and agree to a contract that provides:
● Minimum staffing guidelines that ensure safe patient care.
● Increased hiring and training to end chronic short staffing.
● Job protections against Kaiser's subcontracting and outsourcing plans
"Chronically short-staffed"
"We always want to give our patients the best care, but Kaiser refuses to provide the resources we need to do our jobs safely," said CNA President Cathy Kennedy, RN in the neonatal ICU unit at Kaiser Permanente Roseville Medical Center. "We are chronically short-staffed, which means patients are waiting longer for care. This is unacceptable and unconscionable when Kaiser made more than $14 billion during the first two years of the pandemic."
2 Day Strike
Who: 21,000 nurses at 21 Northern California Kaiser facilities
What: Kaiser nurses to hold two-day strike for patient safety
When: Strike Averted, Tentative Agreement has been reached.
Where: Locations below
"Nurses are missing their breaks and lunches every single day due to short staffing," said Diane McClure, RN in the post-anesthesia care unit at Kaiser Permanente South Sacramento Medical Center. "We need our legally provided breaks so that we are rested and can provide the highest level of care."
"Without enough nurses in both inpatient and outpatient settings, patients are left for hours in the emergency room or receive inadequate and untimely access to outpatient care," said Michelle Vo, RN in the adult primary care unit at Kaiser Permanente Fremont Medical Center. "Our patients deserve better from a corporation that made more than $24 billion over the past five years."
Monday, Nov. 21, 7 a.m. until Wednesday, Nov. 23, 6:59 a.m., picketing daily from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.
STRIKE LOCATIONS
- Roseville Medical Center, 1600 Eureka Rd., Roseville, CA 95661
- Sacramento Medical Center, 2025 Morse Ave., Sacramento, CA 95825
- South Sacramento Medical Center, 6600 Bruceville Rd., Sacramento, CA 95823
- Antioch Medical Center, 4501 Sand Creek Rd., Antioch, CA 94531
- Fremont Medical Center, 39400 Paseo Padre Parkway, Fremont, CA 94538
- Fresno Medical Center, 7300 N Fresno St., Fresno, CA 93720
- Manteca Medical Center, 1777 W. Yosemite Ave., Manteca, CA 95337
- Modesto Medical Center, 4601 Dale Rd., Modesto, CA 95356
- Oakland Medical Center, 3600 Broadway, Oakland, CA 94611
- Redwood City Medical Center, 1100 Veterans Blvd, Redwood City, CA 94063
- Richmond Medical Center, 901 Nevin Ave., Richmond, CA 94801
- San Francisco Medical Center, 2425 Geary Blvd., San Francisco, CA 94115
- San Jose Medical Center, 250 Hospital Pkwy., San Jose, CA 95119
- San Leandro Medical Center, 2500 Merced St., San Leandro, CA 94577
- San Rafael Medical Center, 99 Montecillo Rd., San Rafael, CA 94903
- Santa Clara Medical Center, 700 Lawrence Expy., Santa Clara, CA 95051
- Santa Rosa Medical Center, 401 Bicentennial Way, Santa Rosa, CA 95403
- South San Francisco Medical Center, 1200 El Camino Real, South San Francisco, CA 94080
- Vacaville Medical Center, 1 Quality Dr., Vacaville, CA 95688
- Vallejo Medical Center, 975 Sereno Dr., Vallejo, CA 94589
- Walnut Creek Medical Center, 1425 S. Main St., Walnut Creek, CA 94596
California Nurses Association represents more than 22,000 nurses at 22 Kaiser facilities.