[World] Kaiser Permanente and unions reach tentative deal

Healthcare company Kaiser Permanente and its workers have reached a tentative deal, following the largest medical strike on record.

More than 75,000 nurses, pharmacists and lab technicians in five US states and Washington DC went on a 72-hour strike for better wages and improved staffing last week.

Negotiation talks resumed on Thursday.

The terms of the agreement are not yet known.

Kaiser Permanente wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter: “We are excited to have reached a tentative agreement with the frontline healthcare workers of the @UnionCoalition this morning.”

Acting US Labor Secretary Julie Su mediated Thursday’s in-person talks, which happened at a San Francisco hotel, according to spokespeople from both sides.

In addition to increased pay, the workers want Kaiser Permanente to address a severe staffing shortage.

Kaiser Permanente has said the staffing shortages were spawned by pandemic burnout, which caused millions of healthcare workers to leave their jobs.

The eight unions had also said the company outsourced work to third-party vendors and subcontractors, another top issue during talks.

The previous labour agreement between the eight unions in the negotiating coalition and the company expired on 30 September, but hospitals and emergency rooms remained open throughout the strike.

The Kaiser Permanente strike was one of many in the US this year, which came from a wide field of unions, including the United Auto Workers (UAW) and the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists.

Since taking office, President Joe Biden has directly inserted himself and his White House into labour negotiations, recently making history when he joined the picket line in the ongoing UAW strike, and he hopes to draw on union support in his reelection bid next year.

Ms Su, who he nominated for the permanent secretary post, successfully mediated an agreement in June between California dock workers and their employers.

On X, Kaiser Permanente called her involvement “instrumental”.