Press Releases
Press Statement: The Truth About Why We Are Striking
For Immediate Release
October 12, 2025
The Truth About Why We Are Striking: Health Care Professionals to Strike October 14 for Fair Wages, Real Voice in Patient Care, and True Frontline Collaboration With Kaiser Permanente
The United Nurses Associations of California/Union of Health Care Professionals (UNAC/UHCP), representing tens of thousands of frontline health care professionals in California and Hawaii, will strike beginning October 14 alongside other Alliance of Health Care Unions. Our members include registered nurses, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, certified nurse midwives, certified registered nurse anesthetists, pharmacists, physical therapists, occupational therapists, recreation therapists, dietitians, health educators, case managers, audiologists, speech-language pathologists, and child life specialists.
We do not take the decision to strike lightly. A strike is always a last resort, reached only after every other option has been exhausted. Over the past several months, our bargaining teams have met with Kaiser Permanente at both the local and national tables in good faith. When Kaiser requested mediation in recent weeks, we agreed in the hope of achieving a breakthrough. We’ve made ourselves available to meet anytime, anywhere throughout the 10-day notice period—and beyond.
Despite these efforts, Kaiser has not agreed to a contract that delivers on the core priorities of the frontline health care professionals who make Kaiser work every day. We’re speaking up for better care:
• Making sure appointments are scheduled in a sensible, patient-focused way.
• Ensuring fair pay for healthcare workers, so Kaiser can keep and attract the staff needed to provide great care.
• Giving caregivers a real voice in decisions that affect patients and their health.
Our proposals address real problems. When we call for a stronger voice in scheduling templates, it’s because clinicians need adequate time to spend with patients and prepare for their patients’ visits—time that’s currently being squeezed. You can run machines on a conveyor belt, but patients need pathways built for healing, not speed.
Why Our Wage Proposal is Fair and Reasonable
When the 2021 National Agreement was signed, no one could have predicted historic inflation. Since then, inflation has risen 18.5%, while our members received just 10% in across-the-board wage increases, barely half of what was needed to keep up. Real wages fell while Kaiser gave higher wage increases to other unions and their members. Our members are now at least 7% behind their peers.
We’re not asking for special treatment—we’re asking for equal treatment. Our proposal of a 25% wage increase over four years is designed to restore what was lost, keep pace with the cost of living, and recognize the value of our members’ labor.
Kaiser has the ability to pay. In 2021, reserves stood at $44 billion. In 2024, Kaiser reached $66 billion in reserves—a $22 billion increase. This is not a money problem. It’s a priority problem.
Kaiser is Ignoring Critical Issues
Kaiser’s public messaging conveniently omits its positions on the issues that matter most to health care professionals. Kaiser has engaged in deceptive communications claiming that strikes will harm patient care, when the real harm to patient care comes from chronic unsafe staffing and their refusal to listen to the caregivers who are on the front lines every day—at the bedside, in the clinics, at the pharmacy counters, and in treatment rooms across California and Hawaii.
Throughout negotiations, Kaiser has also used intimidation tactics to punish health care providers who chose to form a union. Kaiser has insisted on drastic cuts in pay, pensions, and other retirement benefits, and health care benefits from caregivers who work on their feet 12 hours a day—simply because they chose to advocate for patient safety and stand up for their coworkers.
Scheduling and staffing: Instead of collaborating with nurses, Kaiser dismissed joint decision-making on scheduling as a “nonstarter” and is insisting on unilateral control over RN schedules and traveler usage — prioritizing corporate control over safe staffing and professional clinical judgment.
Job security: Kaiser walked back previously agreed protections for workers in the event of a sale, showing that protecting employees takes a back seat to corporate flexibility.
Workload relief: Kaiser has refused to establish any guardrails for salaried professionals regularly working past their scheduled hours, effectively ignoring burnout and patient care risks.
These are not “nice-to-haves.” These issues cut to the heart of our ability to provide safe, high-quality patient care.
Standing in Solidarity
This strike is not just about one union. Nearly 46,000 Alliance union members will stand together on October 14, including OFNHP in Oregon, United Steelworkers in Southern California, UNITE HERE! in Hawaii, and Hawaii Nurses and Health Professionals.
Across the country, Kaiser has been raising rates for patients long before this strike began — and those decisions were made far from the bedside. We’re not fighting for corporate perks or boardroom power. We’re standing together to make sure the people who care for you at the bedside are respected, supported, and treated as true partners in your care.
Our Message to Kaiser
We have bargained in good faith, often waiting for hours and days in hotel conference rooms for Kaiser management teams to make an appearance. When our teams did see them in brief appearances, they often showed up unprepared and unwilling to talk about the substantive issues impacting caregivers and their patients.
We are ready to reach a fair contract. But we will not accept a deal that leaves anyone behind, lags behind inflation, or fails to meet the standard Kaiser has already set elsewhere.
We are striking to protect patient care, ensure fairness, and restore collaboration at Kaiser Permanente.
Listen to the People Who Provide Care at Kaiser
Nicole Wooten, RN (a registered nurse in Southern California at Kaiser Riverside in the operating room)
“Nurses go home exhausted because we have too many patients to take care of. The shifts are long, the pace never slows, and there’s always one more call light, one more chart, one more medication to give. You move from room to room like you’re on a timer—because you are.
“And then, when you finally get to leave, you think about the faces you saw that day—the people you wanted to help more but couldn’t. The patient who was scared and needed someone to sit with them, but you had five other rooms to check. The one who wanted to tell you a story, but you were already halfway out the door to handle something urgent.
“When you drive home, you think, I could have done better, but I just didn’t have the time. And that doesn’t feel good. It’s not because we don’t care. It’s because we care so much that it hurts when we can’t give our best.
“Too many patients means you’re constantly prioritizing: Who needs help most right now, who can wait another five minutes, even if they’re uncomfortable or lonely. That’s not how we want to practice nursing. We want to give every patient time, attention, and compassion, not just the bare minimum to survive the shift.
“We go home with tired feet and heavy hearts. We try to rest, but the moments we couldn’t get to—the conversations we cut short, the comfort we couldn’t give—stay with us. Nursing is supposed to be about care. But when there aren’t enough of us, it turns into survival for the patients and for the nurses. And that’s not fair to anyone.
“This fight for a strong contract is personal for me. I grew up on the picket line. Back in the 1980s, my dad worked at Brown & Sharpe in Rhode Island, and he was part of what’s considered the longest industrial strike in U.S. history. I was just a kid, but I remember standing out there every day with him. He was a picket captain, and he never gave up. That shaped me.
“So when the chance came to step up and be a union advocate, I knew it was my time. When I told my dad, he cried. He said, ‘Now it’s your turn.’
“And that’s why I’m here. Because the work we do matters. Because our patients deserve the best care we can give. And because I believe every nurse, every caregiver, has a calling—to stand up for what is right and what is needed.”
Diana Guerrero, CWON (wound care nurse in Southern California at Kaiser in Los Angeles)
“Seeing a wound heal is one of the most rewarding parts of my job.
“I work at the Wound Care Clinic at Kaiser Sunset. I’ve been an RN since 2007, and in 2021, I became a Certified Wound Ostomy Nurse through the Ben Hudnall Memorial Trust Fund – a program made possible by our union’s hard-fought contract wins that support continuing education for nurses.
“In wound care, I treat the whole person, not just the wound. On any given day, I care for diabetic foot ulcers, surgical wounds, and painful skin fold infections, just to name a few. But my favorite cases are ostomies.
“Patients with bowel disease, pressure injuries, or genetic conditions may need ostomy pouches to collect stool. That’s where the creativity comes in—figuring out which products work best, how to protect their skin, and how to restore their dignity. Offering reassurance and finding a good pouching system can mean the difference between isolation and confidence.
“As a Qualified Bilingual Speaker, I provide consistent, compassionate care to our Spanish-speaking patients. I explain the healing process in their language and advocate for them when they feel unheard. My parents immigrated from Mexico, and had they not become U.S. citizens in 1980, they too might be living with the same fears many in our community face today—fears like ICE raids.
“Being part of our union means everything to me. My grandmother picked grapes and marched with César Chávez. She faced unsafe working conditions, pesticide exposure, and job insecurity. I carry her legacy with me in my union work—learning our contract, standing up for members, and educating others about their rights.
“I’ve passed that spirit on to my 10-year-old daughter. I tell her how important it is to speak up. I was so proud when she advocated for her autistic brother at school. Being in a union isn’t just about improving our workplace—it’s about building the courage to advocate for justice, at work, at home, and in our communities. Our fight will live on and help future generations, just as those before us paved the way for the rights we have today.”
Donah Tan, RN (a registered nurse in Southern California at Kaiser Panorama City in the Gastroenterology clinic)
“I keep thinking about all the young mothers coming into nursing. I don’t want them to feel what I felt that night. We’re in a profession that’s mostly women, dedicated to caring for people. But when it comes to caring for our basic needs as mothers, I want Kaiser to realize that lactation accommodations are important.
“In 2024, I started using the lactation room. It took me 10 minutes to get there, going all the way to the other side of the building. Sometimes, people think lactation breaks are extra vacation time, but they’re not for fun. Still, I was grateful to provide milk for my daughter. After a while, she wouldn’t take bottles anymore. Luckily, we lived nearby, and my husband would bring her over on his days off so I could breastfeed her directly.
In my unit, nurses are often asked to work overtime. Overtime is supposed to be voluntary. One day, I informed management early in the shift that I couldn’t stay late because I needed to go home to breastfeed. My husband was at work, and my 82-year-old mother-in-law, watching our daughter, couldn’t drive to the facility. When I talked to management again, they said, ‘If you leave, you will be abandoning your patients.’ That scared me. I’ve never been accused of abandonment in my 20 years as a nurse.
I felt cornered. I didn’t bring my pump supplies; it had been 10 hours since I last expressed breastmilk, and I was not going to abandon my patients. Physically, I began pacing back and forth because I was so uncomfortable— it is like you have to pee, but there’s nowhere to go.
I worked until midnight. My union rep came and stayed to support me. No managers came. When I finally got home, my baby was crying hysterically. She was so hungry. And I was in so much pain.
Providing milk for your child is a beautiful thing your body can do, and our workplaces shouldn’t make it more difficult.
The whole experience was so traumatic that I transferred departments. I never want anybody to experience what I went through.”
Walter Fulgram (PA-C) (a physician assistant/associate in Northern California at Kaiser Santa Clara in Interventional Cardiology)
“For almost 15 years, I tried to change things from the inside. I believed that with persistence, collaboration, and a loud enough voice, we could fix the system. And in some ways, we did. But what I kept running into were massive discrepancies: Between departments, between sites, and even between people doing the same job.
“It hit me hardest when I’d run into colleagues across the hospital. I’d worked hard to build a fair environment in cardiology. But others, especially those in smaller departments, didn’t have that. If they weren’t vocal, they got less. If management turned over (and it did, a lot), policies changed on a whim. There was no consistency. No fairness.
“That’s when I realized: We needed a union.
“I didn’t come to that lightly. Honestly, it was my last resort. But as I helped organize, I saw how deep the inequities ran. I’d hear things like, ‘Well, NPs (nurse practitioners) can do that because they have a contract. You don’t.’ That stuck with me. And that’s when I understood: It wasn’t just about advocating for me. It was about everyone who didn’t have the tools or voice to speak up.
“Joining the bargaining team has been eye-opening. I’ve learned that what I thought mattered most isn’t always what others need. Our job is to craft a contract that lifts the floor, even if it doesn’t meet every special case. Some people may lose the exceptions they earned over the years, but the ones who’ve had the least will finally get a shot at better working conditions.
“This contract won’t fix everything. But it’s a start. And more than anything, it gives us a seat at the table—now, and again in the future. That’s change. That’s progress.”
Matt Piskura, PT, (physical therapist in Hawaii at Kaiser Moanalua home health)
“I never really saw myself stepping into a union leadership role, at least not at first. It started with a general sense that organizing was a good idea. Maybe by nature I’m a bit of an organizer, so I began by making calls to folks in my home health group here in Hawai‘i.
“One conversation led to another, and from those early efforts, I was asked to be on the bargaining team. That was my first experience with something on this scale. Eventually, I became an officer. It all happened by just staying open: Open to learning. Open to people. Open to the idea that we were part of something bigger than ourselves.
“Being in a union has really taken me out of my professional silo. I’ve always been in a field that’s about helping people, but being a physical therapist was a very specific lane.
“Through this experience, I’ve connected with people from all kinds of roles, backgrounds, and perspectives. That interconnectedness has been incredibly meaningful to me. It’s helped me grow not just as a leader, but as a person.
“One of my biggest ‘aha’ moments came when I joined the AI and technology subcommittee. Sitting in a room with 40 professionals from across disciplines, trying to figure out how to write language that would actually shape how business gets done.
That was new for me. To see how information gets drawn out, organized, and sharpened into something clear and effective. That whole process really struck me. And to see it work, to see it unfold successfully, that was powerful.
“But what really stood out through it all was the unity. We had input from every level: Management, frontline workers, union reps. The collective strength of that group was impressive. It showed me what happens when people come together around a shared goal.
“There’s something special about doing this work as part of the Hawai‘i delegation. We may be small, but we’re strong. We bring a unique spirit to the table, and I think it matters. So, for my fellow members back home, I’m sending a ‘cheehoo, double shaka’ stick-together message. There’s real power in unity. I’m excited to see what comes next.”
Roland Jackson, PT, (physical therapist in Northern California at Kaiser Roseville)
I’ve been a physical therapist in Northern California since 1998, and over the years, I’ve seen how crucial regular follow-up appointments are for my patients’ recovery. In the early days, I had the flexibility to schedule patients for return visits within a week or two, which is especially important for those recovering from surgeries like knee replacements or dealing with recent injuries. These timely sessions allowed us to monitor progress closely and make necessary adjustments to treatment plans.
However, as time has gone on, increasing workloads and administrative changes have made it challenging to maintain this level of care. Now, it’s not uncommon for patients to wait a month or more between appointments. This delay can hinder their recovery and leave them feeling frustrated and neglected.
The situation is even more challenging for my Spanish-speaking patients. While I speak Spanish and strive to provide individualized care, the lack of available appointment slots often forces me to choose between overextending myself or placing patients in group sessions where they might not receive the attention they need. This can exacerbate feelings of neglect and frustration among these patients.
To address these issues, my colleagues and I have proposed solutions such as ensuring adequate coverage when therapists are on leave and adhering to contractual agreements that support manageable workloads. Unfortunately, these suggestions have largely been met with silence from management. This lack of response not only affects us as health care providers but also undermines the quality of care our patients receive.
Consistent and timely physical therapy appointments are essential for patient health and well-being. Without them, we risk compromising recovery outcomes and patient trust, especially among vulnerable populations like non-English speakers.