Kaiser Permanente Nurses, Others Consider Strike As Talks Falter

PORTLAND, OR – More than 3,000 medical professional, including nurses, are voting on whether or not to authorize a strike against Kaiser Permanente. Their contract runs out on September 30.

The Oregon Federation of Nurses and Health Professionals, who represent 3,400 people employed by Kaiser in Oregon say that a recent survey of registered nurses who belong to the union found that if the vote were taken now, 93 percent would vote to walk.

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"Striking is always our last resort, but Kaiser seems determined to push forward proposals that would hurt staff, patients, and our entire public health system," Jodi Barschow, a Kaiser RN and President of OFNHP, says.

"Kaiser needs to do the right thing and put our patients before profits."

Barscow says that talks have broken down.

The union says that Kaiser, who has not responded to the latest news, is proposing a 1 percent raise in hourly wages and a two-tier pay system that would offer "much lower" compensation to newly hired workers.

The union plans a rally outside of Kaiser's headquarters on NE Multnomah St. on September 28.