KPHCP Bargaining Team Nominee Biographies
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Classification: Audiologist
Brandy Brent:
I have been an audiologist at Kaiser Woodland Hills for 16 years. I have previously been a steward and a part of the bargaining team. I love what we do as audiologist and want to see us get proper compensation for all that we give.
Classification: Health Educator (Including Dietitian Health Educators)
Bita Hirsa:
I have years of experience as steward & bargaining negotiator with our prior union.
I can bring wealth of knowledge and experience to bargaining team and help with winning a strong contract for all of us (UNAC-UHCP members).
Isis Hernandez:
My name is Isis G. Hernandez and I’ve been a Registered Dietitian for 12 years. I became a dietitian for the love of the job. I love helping and educating people. Since becoming a dietitian I became a certified diabetes and education specialist because I saw a lack of care within our Diabetic communities. In my current role I help individuals with nutrition assessments and lifestyle changes to better their health.
I was active with our union and was a union steward for several years. My goal was to advocate for my colleagues in protecting working conditions and enforce our contract. I participated in the Regional Professional committee for several years. In this committee we were able to establish a guideline for dietitian appointments. We were able to establish the length of visit with proper charting time.
My last project was with the Organizing Committee (OC) to unionized us with a much stronger union. In this role I was privileged to meet incredible people and enjoyed hearing from all classifications on what matters to you. In the role of a bargaining team member; I will continue to advocate for the betterment of all our professions in a stronger voice.
Marla Mariles:
My name is Marla Mariles, and I am a health educator with the Riverside Medical Center Endocrinology Department. I started out at the Baldwin Park Medical Center in 2016 as a registered dietitian working for Food and Nutrition Services. I covered inpatient services, outpatient services and Peritoneal Dialysis. In 2018, I transferred to the Riverside Medical Center Food and Nutrition Services department as an inpatient dietitian. I transferred to the Endocrinology Department earlier this year as a health educator. I have served on the UNAC/UHCP organizing committee since 2020.
I have been married to my high school sweetheart for 19 years. I have a feisty 5-year-old daughter that just started kindergarten and two senior cats, 13 and 16 years old, that have a love-hate relationship with the baby that took their place. I spend my free time enjoying my family. My daughter loves spending time in San Diego, so we plan to be there on Labor Day Weekend.
I hope that my experience as an inpatient and outpatient registered dietitian as well my time on the UNAC/UHCP organizing committee will be an asset to the bargaining team.
Megan Mulhern:
Hello! I was on the bargaining committee for the 2021-2022 NUHW contract negotiations, and would love to continue to be involved in the process of fighting for the best contract for the Registered Dietitians/Health Educators with our new union support. I bring back the information after each meeting to my coworkers in my department, and bring their feedback back to negotiations. I am familiar with our previous contract, and what how negotiations went previously, as well as what our union members previously wanted to prioritize.
Classification: Registered Dietitian (Excluding Dietitian Health Educators)
Amanda Wolff:
My name is Amanda Wolff and I am nominating myself for a position on the UNAC/UHCP Bargaining Team. I’ve been a Registered Dietitian here at Kaiser for almost 15 years. I began working in the hospital, then shortly transitioned to the outpatient clinic, where I have been ever since.
My work as an outpatient dietitian is very important to me because I enjoy helping people make a difference in their lives. One of the things I love most about working here at Kaiser are my colleagues. I work with THE BEST dietitians. I value each one, and most are lifelong friends. My colleagues respect my expertise in our field, as well as my years of service here at Kaiser. I would value the opportunity to represent them at the bargaining table with Kaiser management.
I work well in a team setting, enjoy sharing ideas, am resourceful, take initiative when there is a problem, and am an effective communicator. It’s so important to me for our voices to be heard, so I am prepared to learn about the bargaining process and do what it takes to win us a great and fair contract.
Thx!
Amanda Wolff MPH, RD
San Diego
Charlie Zhao:
Dear Fellow Dietitians/Healthcare Pros,
I’m Charlie Zhao, clinical dietitian at LAMC.
When Brian got the decertify NUHW started in February 2020, I quickly joined the movement by sending emails to the entire membership in helping shape up the eventual landslide victory early on. Remember my emails and critics from some NUHW supporters? As UNAC staffer Kuu said, our victory was special and extra sweet to me because it was difficult going openly against NUHW and suffering loss of friendship which some of you may have struggled with, too.
When our reelection campaign kicked off in May 2022, I contacted Brian, Kuu, and others frequently in helping revise/finalize the UNAC Response to NUHW’s 5/23/22 campaign poster. That Response helped make NUHW “speechless” toward the crucial finale of the race. All that they said were “Happy Juneteenth”, steward training, etc.
I joined 2 NUHW bargaining sessions on my own time before. They weren’t exciting but may help me function quicker if elected. I could be tough with any unreasonable KP negotiator(s) when/if called for. I ask for your votes. I’d work with the chief negotiator Vanessa as a team member to get us a better contract under UNAC.
Thank you!
Kelly Mai:
I’ve worked at Kaiser Permanente for 11 years as a Clinical Dietitian & I learned that our voice matters when it comes to expressing our needs and our concerns with our employer. I was in the Bargaining Team for my last NUHW union & I’ve learned so much of what an impact I have by joining the team on behalf of representing my colleagues/clinical dietitian team. That is why I would like to continue on being part of the Bargaining Team. Thank you!
Kristine Schwartz:
I am a registered dietitian in Orange County, Kaiser for 19 years in total at both Anaheim and Irvine.
My responsibility consists of acute care in the inpatient setting. I am a certified diabetes care and education specialist (CDCES) and have knowledge and experience in ICU and NICU. I’m also involved with cancer patients at the radiation/oncology department. In the past, Orange County dietitians were responsible for both inpatient duties and outpatient counseling, so, I am familiar with the challenges that both roles bring.
My participation in UNACs Organizing Committee have taught me why it is important to have a voice in the workplace and a strong union. My passion in fighting for a fair contract, coupled with years of experience and inside knowledge of KP, makes me a good candidate for the bargaining team.
I’m hoping to work with all of you and help dietitians have a real voice to win a contract that compensates us accordingly. If given the opportunity, I will be dedicated in working with the bargaining team to capture the concerns that matter most to us all – improved living wages, better working conditions and best care to our patients
Krisi Schwartz RD
Marla Simon:
My name is Marla Simon and I would be excited to be your inpatient RD bargaining representative. I have been a clinical RD at Kaiser Panorama City for more than 35 years and have seen how strong union representation can help us to achieve better benefits, salaries, and job security. I believe that our contract should be just as competitive as the RN contract and other front-line providers. Our salaries should not only keep up with inflation but should also reward our longevity with meaningful raises and step increases. Having served as a previous union steward, I understand the priorities of my colleagues and have helped them prevail at their grievance meetings. I have also had previous union bargaining experience and with the resources of our new union, I am confident we will be in an even better position. My experience has helped me gain a well-rounded understanding of the RD’s needs and has also helped me to see the value of continuing to push for change. I believe that as a member of the bargaining team I can fight for our members and get what we deserve.
Thank you, Marla Simon RD, CNSC
Rita Leung-Stewart:
My name is Rita Leung-Stewart, I am an inpatient Dietitian at Fontana. I have been working with Kaiser for 14 years. I have been through several union transitions, strikes, and negations. We lost so much during those years. I want to be the voice of our members to achieve a better contract. We deserve to be treated as equals among our colleagues. In the past 9 years, we did not get the respect we deserved. However, by having UNAC/UHCP as our union we can achieve our goals. As one of the UNAC/UHCP organizing committee for the last 2 years during our election, I have listened to my colleagues’ concerns and shared their frustrations. I have reached out to our colleagues explained the pros and cons of joining UNAC/UHCP, clarified some of the misunderstanding. I have attended all the OC meetings and helped to organize the election. Now it is time to united and bring it into action. If I am elected to the bargaining team, your voice will be heard. I look forward for the opportunity to work together to meet our goals and achieve a fair contract.
Classification: Speech-Language Pathologist
Brian Davis:
I’m interested in joining the bargaining committee to ensure the voices of not only speech language pathologists are heard, but all members of our bargaining group.
I have been a speech language pathologist since 2012 and with Kaiser Permanente since May 2016. I work in the clinic and the hospital with both adult and pediatric patients. In the past I represented speech pathologists in Kaiser Permanente’s Parkinson’s Net group. I also have a bachelor’s degree in labor and industrial relations which may give me a clearer sense of the interplay between labor and management.
I’ve been engaged in union issues since early 2020. I was a lead member of the organizing committee in the campaign to join UNAC/UHCP, helping to write communication to members and facilitate informational meetings. I also served as the co-chair for the NUHW Regional Professional Practices Committee for speech language pathologists working with labor and management to help define the charter and recruit members to the committee.
My education, work experience and union involvement has helped prepare me for a role on the bargaining committee. If given the opportunity to join the bargaining committee I commit to helping all of us obtain the contract we deserve.
Linda Stuart:
About 3 years ago, I started talking to my colleagues about how we could get out of NUHW and join a union where we would actually have a voice and into one that shares our values. Finally, we succeeded in joining UNAC/UHCP! I’m excited to help to secure a contract that begins to catch us up to other professionals, ones who work side by side with us. This is just the beginning!