A Kaiser Permanente clinic in west Salem. (Saphara Harrell/Salem Reporter)
Workers for Kaiser Permanente won’t go on strike after the health care provider reached an agreement with a union representing thousands of its workers over the weekend.
That means operations will continue as normal at the four Kaiser clinics in the Salem area.
The deal, reached Saturday, means a new four-year contract for about 50,000 Kaiser employees, including about 3,400 nurses and providers in Oregon and southwest Washington. The agreement was negotiated with the Alliance of Health Care Unions.
According to a statement from Kaiser, the contract includes across the board wage increases for all union-represented employees through 2025, no reductions in health insurance coverage and new agreements on safe staffing and workloads.
“The Alliance of Health Care Unions fought to preserve a Kaiser Permanente where patients can count on excellent patient care and service. This has guided our work for 24 years. This agreement will mean patients will continue to receive the best care, and Alliance members will have the best jobs,” said Hal Ruddick, Executive Director of Alliance of Health Care Unions, in a statement. “This contract protects our patients, provides safe staffing, and guarantees fair wages and benefits for every Alliance member.”
Kaiser employees represented by unions voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike in October as contract negotiations were ongoing. That strike would have begun Nov. 15 if a deal had not been reached.
-Rachel Alexander
