31,000 NURSES AND HEALTH CARE WORKERS IN HISTORIC STRIKE AT KAISER PERMANENTE ON JAN. 26

January 25, 2026, at 7:00 a.m. PT

CONTACT: press@unacuhcp.org

**Photos and videos of Kaiser nurses’ recent strike here, courtesy of UNAC/UHCP**

31,000 NURSES AND HEALTH CARE WORKERS TO STRIKE AT KAISER PERMANENTE

Historic strike over Kaiser’s unfair labor practices will span dozens of hospitals, hundreds of clinics across California and Hawaii

With nurses on strike from coast to coast, UNAC/UHCP RNs and health care professionals highlight how unsafe staffing is putting patients at risk

LOS ANGELES – In the largest strike of health care professionals this year, 31,000 frontline registered nurses and health care professionals will walk out on Monday, January 26 at more than two dozen Kaiser Permanente hospitals and hundreds of clinics across California and Hawaii. The Unfair Labor Practice (ULP) strike will continue until an agreement is reached.

On the picket lines, health care workers will call attention to what’s at stake in settling a fair contract: the growing crisis caused by Kaiser’s failure to invest in safe staffing levels, timely access to quality care, and fair wages for frontline caregivers.

The health care workers, who are members of United Nurses Associations of California/Union of Health Care Professionals (UNAC/UHCP), had been bargaining with Kaiser since May 2025. In December, Kaiser management left the table and negotiations stalled. The union filed an unfair labor practice (ULP) charge against Kaiser at the National Labor Relations Board, alleging the employer unlawfully walked away from the table and also attempted to bypass the agreed-upon national bargaining process. Kaiser’s illegal conduct badly undermined the bargaining process established in federal law.

Even as some talks are slated to continue, frontline caregivers are prepared to fight to protect patient care and restore respect for caregivers.

WHAT: 31,000 nurses and health care workers on strike at Kaiser Permanente

WHEN: Monday, January 26, 2026, beginning at 7:00 a.m., local time; strike will continue until an agreement is reached

WHO: UNAC/UHCP members who include registered nurses, pharmacists, nurse anesthetists, nurse practitioners, midwives, physician assistants, rehab therapists, speech language pathologists, dietitians, and other specialty health care professionals.

PICKETING LOCATIONS: (The strike is in effect at all locations regardless of picketing).

Northern California

• Oakland Medical Center, 3600 Broadway, Oakland, CA 94611
• Roseville Medical Center, 1600 Eureka Rd, Roseville, CA 95661
• Santa Clara Medical Center, 700 Lawrence Expy, Santa Clara, CA 95051

Central/Bakersfield

• Kaiser Stockdale Medical Offices, 3501 Stockdale Hwy, Bakersfield, CA 93309
• Lancaster Medical Office Building, 43112 15th St. West, Lancaster, CA 93534

Los Angeles

• Anaheim Medical Center, 3440 E La Palma Ave, Anaheim, CA 92806
• Irvine Medical Center, 6640 Alton Pkwy, Irvine, CA 92618
• Downey Medical Center, 9333 Imperial Hwy, Downey, CA 90242
• South Bay Medical Center, 25825 Vermont Ave, Harbor City, CA 90710
• Los Angeles Medical Center, 4867 Sunset Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90027
• West Los Angeles Medical Center, 6041 Cadillac Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90034
• Baldwin Park Medical Center, 1011 Baldwin Park Blvd, Baldwin Park, CA 91706
• Panorama City Medical Center, 13651 Willard St., Panorama City, CA 91402
• Woodland Hills Medical Center, 5601 De Soto Ave, Woodland Hills, CA 91367

Riverside/ San Bernardino

• Riverside Medical Center, 10800 Magnolia Ave, Riverside, CA 92505
• Fontana Medical Center, 9961 Sierra Ave., Fontana, CA 92335
• Ontario Medical Center, 2295 S Vineyard Ave, Ontario, CA 91761

San Marcos

• San Marcos Medical Center, 360 Rush Dr, San Marcos, CA 92078

San Diego

• Zion Medical Center, 4647 Zion Ave. San Diego, CA 92120
• San Diego Medical Center, 9455 Clairemont Mesa Blvd, San Diego, CA 92123

 

Hawaii (commencing 7:00 a.m. HT)

• Moanalua Medical Center, 3288 Moanalua Rd, Honolulu, HI 96819

 

**INTERVIEWS AVAILABLE: nurses and health care workers can give live or taped interviews ahead of Monday’s strike and on the strike lines, including in Spanish.**

 

BACKGROUND:

 

Across California and Hawaii, Kaiser health care professionals have taken escalating actions in recent months – including a massive five-day strike in October – to demand safer staffing, fair compensation, and respect for the professionals who deliver care. Workers say persistent staffing shortages are driving burnout and turnover, delaying care, increasing workloads, and leaving fewer experienced caregivers at the bedside and in the clinic.

 

UNAC/UHCP is part of the Alliance of Health Care Unions, which bargains a national contract for 23 local unions covering dozens of hospitals and hundreds of clinics from Hawaii to Washington, D.C. The vast majority of UNAC/UHCP union members work in California, where 1 in 4 residents get their care from Kaiser. UNAC/UHCP also represents workers in Hawaii, where Kaiser serves 272,000 health plan members.

“We’re not going on strike to make noise. We’re striking because Kaiser has committed serious unfair labor practices and because Kaiser refuses to bargain in good faith over staffing that protects patients, workload standards that stop moral injury, and the respect and dignity that Kaiser caregivers have been denied for far too long,” said Charmaine S. Morales, RN, President of UNAC/UHCP.

“Striking is the lawful power of working people, and we are prepared to use it on behalf of our profession and patients.”

CORE ISSUES DRIVING THE CONTRACT NEGOTIATIONS:

• Kaiser’s unfair labor practices: Kaiser is unlawfully using a pretext about the union’s lawful and federally protected speech and conduct to stall negotiations, and to bypass the established national bargaining process.
• Safe staffing: Short staffing and rising workloads are causing dangerous delays in care, higher risk of errors, and burnout. Kaiser’s proposed wage and benefit cuts will drive more clinicians out — making the staffing crisis worse.
• Fair wages and economic security: Kaiser’s proposals are hitting newly organized Kaiser professionals — including northern California Certified Nurse-Midwives — with wage cuts tied to joining our union, and pay changes that mean longer hours for less pay. Kaiser is also refusing pay parity for Northern California Physician Assistants compared with Northern California Nurse Practitioners, even as the cost of housing, food, and health care keeps climbing.
• Retirement and benefits security: Kaiser is seeking major reductions to benefits and retirement — including active medical coverage, pension benefits, and “Plan B” — that would fall heavily on newly organized groups, including Northern California Certified Nurse-Midwives, Northern California Physician Assistants, Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists, and Child Life Specialists. These are takeaways that undermine long-term stability for caregivers.

 

On January 15, UNAC/UHCP released a report: “Profits Over Patients: Kaiser Permanente’s Shift in Institutional Priorities and the Dire Consequences to Health Care,” which documents how Kaiser has strayed from its founding mission and moved towards profit, expansion, and Wall Street-style asset accumulation that has created real consequences for patient care and caregiver well-being.

Kaiser claims it “cannot afford” union proposals for safe staffing and fair contracts, but the numbers tell a different story — the health care system is hoarding vast surpluses. The report includes documentation that Kaiser has raised premiums, while failing to staff as legally required.

“When Kaiser says it doesn’t have resources to fix staffing, what we hear is that a nonprofit health care organization would rather protect an enormous financial cushion than protect patients and the people who care for them,” said Morales, UNAC/UHCP President.

In addition, Kaiser has turned its employer-controlled pension investment funds to questionable areas that include foreign companies, ICE detention centers, and predatory lending.

UNAC/UHCP is calling for scrutiny, accountability, and course-correction toward mission-driven practices that won’t harm our communities.

As workers prepare to strike, UNAC/UHCP is demanding Kaiser bargain in good faith to settle a contract that puts patient care first.

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United Nurses Associations of California/Union of Health Care Professionals (UNAC/UHCP) represents more than 40,000 registered nurses and healthcare professionals in California and Hawaii, including optometrists; pharmacists; physical, occupational and speech therapists; case managers; nurse midwives; social workers; clinical lab scientists; physician assistants and nurse practitioners; hospital support and technical staff. UNAC/UHCP is affiliated with the National Union of Hospital and Health Care Employees (NUHHCE) and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), AFL-CIO.