When we stand united, we win!
Our union represents over 4,500 Kaiser Permanente employees in Oregon and Southwest Washington, and we’re standing united with our Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions that is 85,000 members strong. To win a great contract in, we’ll have to take a stand and show Kaiser Permanente management that we’re not afraid to speak up and advocate for the wage increases, staffing, and education that will help us care for our families, and continue giving our patients the quality care that they deserve.
Kaiser has $32 billion in reserves, and earned $3.2 billion in profits in just the first quarter of 2019. With this kind of financial security, those of us who work so hard to maintain Kaiser’s “five star” reputation should be able to share in the health system’s success.
What are our priorities in bargaining?
Based on the results of the bargaining surveys that members took last year, we’ve agreed that our priorities in bargaining are:
- To protect our Job security ensure that our jobs are not outsourced or subcontracted out
- To win wage increases that reward employees and keep up with the high cost of living: more than 2% a year
- To keep our healthcare & dental benefits affordable, with no increases to co-pays and premiums
- Improved backfill and staffing
- To protect our retirement benefits including pension, TSA match & retiree medical
- To improve our career advancement opportunities
- To increase our union strength and improve our ability to solve problems quickly
- To have an equal partnership with Kaiser management
We’re raising our voices during these negotiations to protect our jobs and benefits, secure our futures with a long-term contract, and increase our ability to care for our families with competitive wage increases that help us keep up with the rising cost of living in the Northwest.
SEIU Local 49 Local Kaiser Bargaining Interests
In accordance with the Framework for Local Bargaining and the understanding that the terms of the Collective Bargaining Agreement cannot be changed unless the parties agree; the following are the limited scope of Local contractual items SEIU Local 49 would like to address.
Economic
Recruit, retain and reward the best quality staff:
- Address below-market differentials to incentivize staffing critical shifts
- Improve access to education, training & professional development
- Recognize and reward longevity and the value of experienced employees
Non- Economic
- Integrate Letters of Understanding with current relevance and practice into the Collective Bargaining Agreement (or extend)
- Modernize language around new union member on-boarding, union membership and union rights and responsibilities
- Language & formatting clean up: by agreement