To our employees and physicians:
Welcome to For the Record, your source for sound information about Kaiser Permanente Northern California and the opportunities and challenges we face.
As we consider how best to respond to the rapid changes we're seeing in health care, the economy, and our day-to-day environment, we have been and will continue to be engaged in discussions with the unions that represent our employees. We know you may hear conflicting information from different sources, so we want to make sure you are equipped with facts and information about what Kaiser Permanente is doing and why.
Thank you for all you contribute, every day, to help KP achieve its mission to provide high-quality, affordable health care and to improve the health of our members and the communities we serve. We encourage you to check this site often and contribute your own questions.
Oct. 3 update: Kaiser Permanente and the Alliance of Health Care Unions have reached a Tentative Agreement on a national, 3-year collective bargaining agreement that covers nearly 48,000 unionized Kaiser Permanente health care workers in 22 union locals. The Tentative Agreement was unanimously approved by an Alliance bargaining delegate conference September 29 and will now go to union members for ratification. The voting is expected to be complete by the end of October. A senior Kaiser Permanente leadership group must also give its formal approval. If ratified, the agreement will have a retroactive effective date of October 1, 2018.
An Important Message From Chuck Columbus, Senior Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer: I’m pleased to report that KP and the Alliance of Health Care Unions are moving forward productively toward a new agreement that will enable us to continue to be a great place to work and to receive high-quality, affordable health care.
The following message was sent to all employees on Friday, June 8, from Chuck Columbus, Senior Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer: In the weeks since we convened our national labor summit, we have focused on rebuilding a successful labor management partnership with union leadership, in the wake of the split in the Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions. This includes engaging union leaders to create an improved partnership agreement, fulfill our bargaining obligations as set forth in the National Agreement and continue to deliver on our mission of providing high-quality, affordable care and to improve the health of our members and the communities we serve.
The following message was sent to all employees on Wednesday, May 9, 2018: We invited the leadership of every union representing Kaiser Permanente employees to attend a national labor summit this past Monday (and all but one accepted). Our current Labor Management Partnership (LMP) has delivered more than 20 years of productive collaboration and significant results, thanks to the incredible work and innovation of employees, managers and physicians working together. Unfortunately, due to recent events, the current partnership cannot continue as it is.
The following email was sent today from Chuck Columbus, Senior Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer, to all Kaiser Permanente employees: You may recall that last month, on the eve of National Bargaining, the Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions split into two groups, due to leadership conflicts between the unions. As we promised at the time, we have spent the last several weeks meeting with union leadership, to ensure we understand their perspective, interests, and the potential implications of their decisions. Just as importantly, we’ve been working to find a way to move forward, together.
We are pleased to announce that Kaiser Permanente nurses have voted to ratify the tentative agreement announced on March 17, and we have a new, five-year contract with the California Nurses Association (CNA). The contract reflects our respect for Kaiser Permanente nurses and the excellent care they provide to our members and patients.
The following email was sent today from Chuck Columbus, Senior Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer, to all Kaiser Permanente employees: We were notified Monday night by 21 unions, which comprise a significant portion of the Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions, that they have decided to leave the Coalition, effective immediately, and will not take part in National Bargaining.
We are pleased to announce that Kaiser Permanente and the California Nurses Association (CNA) have reached a tentative agreement for a new 5-year contract for nurses in our Northern California region. The agreement reflects our respect for Kaiser Permanente nurses and the excellent care they provide to our patients and members.
Today, Kaiser Permanente and the California Nurses Association (CNA) met for the 43rd day of contract negotiations.The parties continued discussing staffing and economic proposals in their efforts to reach agreement on a new contract.
Today, Kaiser Permanente and the California Nurses Association (CNA) met for the 42nd day of contract negotiations. The parties reviewed progress to date, and established a framework for discussing staffing and economic proposals. Both parties are working hard to reach settlement on a new contract.
