The terms of this contract will allow Kaiser “to fulfill our mission of providing high-quality, affordable and accessible health care to our members.” Greg Holmes, vice president and director of human resources at Kaiser.
dialogue asked Michael McQuarrieAn Arizona State University sociologist who directs its Center for Work and Democracy explains what the settlement agreement is about and why it matters.
What are the terms of the settlement?
Caesars employees will receive 21% salary increase during the contract perioda 6% salary increase in October 2023, and a 5% salary increase in October 2024, 2025 and 2026.
Notably, the contract also includes a new hourly minimum wage for Kaiser workers in California, which will increase to $25 by 2026.However, by then all California health care employers will be required to meet this wage level because California Governor Gavin Newsom signs a new law achieve this effect.
exist In other states, the contract minimum wage is $23 an hour Once all pay increases called for in the new contract are phased in.
The contract also calls for some improvements to benefits, such as Higher performance bonuses.The final settlement agreement reportedly included Guaranteed performance bonus of at least $1,500 If Kaiser meets financial benchmarks and patient health benchmarks.
I understand from workers involved in the negotiations that the bonus for shifts including after 5:30 p.m. will rise to $3.25 an hour.This means that if this contract is approved, the number of these evening and night shifts will increase $2 from the 2019-2023 contract. Without this monetary incentive, workers often try to get more desirable day shifts, increasing turnover and exacerbating nighttime staffing shortfalls.
The new contract will also limit Kaiser’s ability to outsource or subcontract union work, including: included in previous contract Kaiser and the union reached an agreement in 2019.
A federation of labor unions has agreed to streamline the internal bidding process for open positions to help Caesars address staffing shortages. Additionally, the contract includes provisions for training new health care workers sought by the union.
Why do workers feel a strike is necessary? Did the strikes achieve their goals?
My contacts within the union told me they were under the impression that Caesars had largely walked away from negotiations in the weeks leading up to the strike—although its management team did return to the bargaining table at the last minute before the strike began.bargain Officially starting in April 2023.
The unions in the alliance rejected Kaiser’s conditions at the time, which included plans to lower wages and expand dependency About subcontracted workers.Caesar also never responded to the League’s latest economic proposals until last minute negotiations But a strike could not be avoided.
COVID-19 pandemic Tensions between managers and workers at Caesars reached an unprecedented level. Healthcare Workers of the West United/SEIU, the union’s largest union, Its members were surveyed in 2022 and found that employees were stressed and felt that management was unresponsive to their concerns. extensive academic research Support these findings.
For months, Caesar had been seeking Hire 10,000 new employees by the end of 2023 Filling vacancies that result in understaffing and stress for employees.
Negotiations between Caesars and the union increased after the strike, showing the impact of the union’s actions. In fact, once workers went on strike, Caesars ultimately agreed to terms that were closer to the union’s original demands for wages, benefits and subcontracting than what it had previously expressed a willingness to accept.
How did workers react to the proposed settlement?
Union members must vote in favor of ratifying the contract for it to take effect. Strike leaders and workers involved in negotiations told me they were optimistic that would happen.vote Starting October 18th and should Ends November 3.
Michael McQuarrie is the Director of the Center for Work and Democracy, Arizona State University.
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