A union representing about 3,000 workers of Kaiser Permanente Colorado voted this week to authorize as much as a two-week strike, which means they may stroll out after their contract expires on Sept. 30.
Providers Workers Worldwide Union Native 105 estimated Friday night that about 99% of its members who voted have been in favor of authorizing the strike.
“Occurring strike is the very last thing we wish to do,” mentioned Patricia Johnson Gibson, vice chairman of well being care at SEIU Native 105 and a 25-year Kaiser worker. “However we have now been pushed to the brink. We’re combating for habitable wages, safer staffing ranges and, most significantly, affected person care. Kaiser has proven quite a few instances that they’ll resort to unfair labor practices, and we’re prepared to do no matter it takes to verify these services are correctly staffed and sufferers have entry to the highest quality care.”
The union represents about half of Kaiser Permanente Colorado’s workers, together with technicians, entrance workplace workers, licensed sensible nurses and folks working in billing and customer support.
The authorization doesn’t assure a strike will occur. Kaiser Permanente Colorado mentioned negotiations are progressing, and even when the 2 sides can’t attain a deal by the top of the month, the union’s bargaining committee might decide to maintain speaking if it thinks a decision is shut.
Votes will proceed throughout the U.S. over the subsequent couple of weeks as 85,000 well being care employees represented by the Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions resolve whether or not to authorize a strike. The union says that ought to it resolve to stroll out, it could be the most important strike by well being care employees in U.S. historical past.
“This week, we despatched a powerful message to Kaiser administration,” mentioned Stephanie Felix-Sowy, president of SEIU Native 105, in an announcement. “We’re able to cut price, and we’re able to do what’s essential to safe a powerful contract for well being care employees in Colorado.”
Kaiser Permanente has greater than 500,000 members in Colorado, in addition to 33 medical places of work within the state and a community of affiliated physicians and hospitals.
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