About 200 Kaiser Permanente workers picket in Irvine on Wednesday, October 4, 2023. The health care employees launched a three-day strike claiming unfair labor practices and staffing issues. The strike involves more than 75,000 Kaiser workers nationwide, including 23,000 in Southern California. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Kaiser Permanente healthcare workers walk the picket line in Los Angeles as they begin a three-day strike involving more than 75,000 Kaiser workers on Wednesday, October 4, 2023. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Kaiser Permanente healthcare workers walk the picket line in Los Angeles as they begin a three-day strike involving more than 75,000 Kaiser workers on Wednesday, October 4, 2023. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Kaiser Permanente worker Salvador Villaneva spends part of his 50th birthday on the picket line in Irvine on Wednesday, October 4, 2023. Kaiser workers launched a three-day strike claiming unfair labor practices and staffing issues. The strike involves more than 75,000 Kaiser workers nationwide, including 23,000 in Southern California. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Kaiser Permanente workers Anahi and Martin Zeferino with their daughter Mayah, 22 months, join others in Irvine to picket during a three-day strike on Wednesday, October 4, 2023. Workers claim unfair labor practices and staffing issues. The strike involves more than 75,000 Kaiser workers nationwide, including 23,000 in Southern California. The Zeferino’s say they are hoping for a raise and a good pension for their kids. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Crystal Davis, a Kaiser Permanente optician, walks the picket line in Los Angeles as healthcare workers begin a three-day strike involving more than 75,000 Kaiser workers on Wednesday, October 4, 2023. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
John L. Sharron from Lakewood is a patient at Kaiser Permanente Downey Medical Center. He sat at the picket line with a sign he made in solidarity with the healthcare workers. ” hope they settle; it’s all about executive corporate greed, I know that,” he said Wednesday. (Christina Merino, Southern California News Group)
Hundreds of employees at Kaiser Permanente Medical Center picket early Wednesday morning, Oct. 4, 2023. (Photo by Dean Musgrove, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Hundreds of employees at Kaiser Permanente Medical Center picket early Wednesday morning, Oct. 4, 2023. (Photo by Dean Musgrove, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
John L. Sharron from Lakewood is a patient at Kaiser Permanente Downey Medical Center and stands in support with the healthcare workers on strike. “The lines are getting longer,” he said. Sharron said he is proud to be standing with workers. Photo: Christina Merino, SCNG
Two-year-old Eva Setyawan checks out others on the Kaiser Permanente picket line in Irvine where a couple hundred healthcare workers joined 75,000 other workers in multiple states for what they say are unfair labor practices and staffing issues. Eva’s mother is a Kaiser medical assistant. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Striking healthcare workers line the streets outside the Kaiser Permanente DOwney medical center on Wednesday, Oct.4. Photo: Christina Merino, SCNG
Striking healthcare workers line the streets outside the Kaiser Permanente Woodland Hills medical center on Wednesday, Oct.4. Photo: Dean Musgrove, SCNG
Striking healthcare workers line the streets outside the Kaiser Permanente DOwney medical center on Wednesday, Oct.4. Photo: Christina Merino, SCNG
About 200 Kaiser Permanente workers picket in Irvine on Wednesday, October 4, 2023. The health care employees launched a three-day strike claiming unfair labor practices and staffing issues. The strike involves more than 75,000 Kaiser workers nationwide, including 23,000 in Southern California. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Thousands of Kaiser Permanente union employees took to the picket lines Wednesday as 75,000 workers went on a three-day strike across California and three other states.
Representatives with Kaiser emphasized that all of its facilities will remain open during the labor unrest.
Here are some of what those picketers had to say…
Rosie Herrera is an administrative specialist at Kaiser Permanente Downey Medical Center. She’sbeen with Kaiser for 23 years. (Christina Merino, Southern California News Group)
Rosie Herrera: The administrative specialist at Kaiser Permanente Downey Medical Center, Herrera has been with Kaiser for 23 years. She said that healthcare workers deserve fair wages and enough staff to take care of patients.
“I think back maybe 10 to 15 years ago it was better but I just feel that there’s a change now, there has been a change now and change is needed,” she said.
Herrera said she decided to come out to strike to support her colleagues and hopes the strike ends soon with negotiations that give healthcare workers what they deserve.
“It’s not good for anybody, it’s not good for the staff or the patients,” she said. “It disrupts everything, it’s already hard enough to get appointments.”
Patricia Martinez and Mayra Cisneros are both service representatives at Kaiser Permanente Downey Medical Center. Martinez has been with Kaiser for 26 years and Cisneros has been with Kaiser for 13 years. (Christina Merino, Southern California News Group)
Patricia Martinez and Mayra Cisneros are both service representatives at Kaiser Permanente Downey Medical Center.
Martinez has been with Kaiser for 26 years and Cisneros has been with Kaiser for 13 years. “It’s good to see all of us standing together out here,” Martinez said.
“Finally we’re fighting,” said Martinez. She said healthcare workers at Kaiser need staffing, not only in her department but especially in nursing.
“Some of our nurses are working with two or three doctors per one nurse, that’s too much,” she said. “The patients wait long, they suffer. They can be in pain and be waiting a long time.”
Martinez also hopes the strike ends soon. “Hopefully by today they will make a choice,” she said, “because we do want to get back to work, we love to do what we do on a daily basis, but we have to be here.”
John L. Sharron from Lakewood is a patient at Kaiser Permanente Downey Medical Center. He sat at the picket line with a sign he made in solidarity with the healthcare workers. ” hope they settle; it’s all about executive corporate greed, I know that,” he said Wednesday. (Christina Merino, Southern California News Group)
John L. Sharron from Lakewood is a patient at Kaiser Permanente Downey Medical Center. He set up his own lawn chair and made a sign in solidarity with the healthcare workers.
“I hope they settle; it’s all about executive corporate greed, I know that,” he said Wednesday.
He decided to come out and support because “I don’t believe in what Kaiser is doing,” he said. “The lines are getting longer, the parking lot is getting fuller, but they’re not keeping up with the care. They’re going to lose a star if they’re not careful.”
Sharron said he is very proud to be standing in solidarity with the healthcare workers who treat him.
Adrian Arellano, left, is an appointment clerk and Christopher Aragon is a medical assistant at Kaiser Permanente Downey Medical Center. Arellano has been with Kaiser for less than a year and Aragon has been with Kaiser for eight years. (Christina Merino, Southern California News Group)
Adrian Arellano, an appointment clerk, and Christopher Aragon, a medical assistant, both work at Kaiser Permanente Downey Medical Center. Arellano has been with Kaiser for less than a year and Aragon has been with Kaiser for eight years.
“It’s pretty exciting,” Arellano said, “The energy is very positive and it’s really exciting to be around everyone who has the same thoughts on the strike.”
“It’s the last resort; it had to be done,” said Arellano.
“Staffing is very important to be able to provide the best care to the patients,” Aragon said, “not only that but to make sure we’re doing everything safely.”
Both healthcare workers hope that the strike will end soon. “We really hoped that it wouldn’t have to come to this,” said Arellano, “but it’s the last resort.”
Crystal Davis, a Kaiser Permanente optician, walks the picket line in Los Angeles as healthcare workers begin a three-day strike involving more than 75,000 Kaiser workers on Wednesday, October 4, 2023. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Kaiser Permanente healthcare workers walk the picket line in Los Angeles as they begin a three-day strike involving more than 75,000 Kaiser workers on Wednesday, October 4, 2023. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Kaiser Permanente healthcare workers walk the picket line in Los Angeles as they begin a three-day strike involving more than 75,000 Kaiser workers on Wednesday, October 4, 2023. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Kaiser Permanente healthcare workers walk the picket line in Los Angeles as they begin a three-day strike involving more than 75,000 Kaiser workers on Wednesday, October 4, 2023. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Kaiser Permanente healthcare workers walk the picket line in Los Angeles as they begin a three-day strike involving more than 75,000 Kaiser workers on Wednesday, October 4, 2023. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Kaiser Permanente healthcare workers walk the picket line in Los Angeles as they begin a three-day strike involving more than 75,000 Kaiser workers on Wednesday, October 4, 2023. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Kaiser Permanente healthcare workers walk the picket line in Los Angeles as they begin a three-day strike involving more than 75,000 Kaiser workers on Wednesday, October 4, 2023. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Kaiser Permanente healthcare workers walk the picket line in Los Angeles as they begin a three-day strike involving more than 75,000 Kaiser workers on Wednesday, October 4, 2023. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Kaiser Permanente healthcare workers walk the picket line in Los Angeles as they begin a three-day strike involving more than 75,000 Kaiser workers on Wednesday, October 4, 2023. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
A Kaiser representative said both Kaiser management and coalition union representatives were still at the bargaining table this morning, “having worked through the night in an effort to reach an agreement.”
“There has been a lot of progress, with agreements reached on several specific proposals late Tuesday,” the Kaiser statement says. “We remain committed to reaching a new agreement…”
Pickets launched at 6 a.m. at hospitals around Southern California. According to the union, there were pickets launched at Kaiser facilities across the state, including Los Angeles, San Diego, Riverside and Orange counties.
