More than 300 local union member leaders from across the Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions met from April 17-18 to mark the start of national bargaining with Kaiser Permanente. After over a year of labor tension and coordinated member actions, to say there was excitement in the room would be an understatement.  

The first day of bargaining provided an opportunity for union leaders to come together and discuss overall bargaining strategy, review our goals and expected outcomes, and participate in work groups and bargaining training. 

All Coalition unions were represented by their Common Issues Committee (CIC) members as well as a large contingent of observers from each local union.

“We are very pleased to be back at the table and look forward to completing the work we started more than a year ago,” Marianne Giordano, Executive Director of OPEIU Local 30 said. “We’re all looking forward to winning a strong National Agreement so that we can get back to the work of providing excellent care to our patients.”

The April 17-18 sessions focused on establishing the framework for bargaining and no proposals were formally addressed. Formal bargaining will take place during next month’s sessions on May 14-16 in Los Angeles.

“This week’s sessions were encouraging,” Ron Ruggiero, President, SEIU Local 105 said. “Now, it’s time to really get going again and figure out what kind of partnership we want to have.”