National

Kaiser RNs Prepare for One-Day Sympathy Strike to Support Other Kaiser Caregivers Tuesday


OAKLAND–(ENEWSPF)–January 30, 2012.  

Kaiser Nurses Show Sympathy for Striking Caregiviers

Registered nurses and nurse practitioners at Kaiser Permanente hospitals and clinics across Northern and Central California will hold a one-day sympathy strike Tuesday to support other frontline Kaiser staff who will be striking Tuesday to protest Kaiser demands for substantial cuts in healthcare coverage and retirement benefits and short staffing of mental health services.  At the same time Kaiser officials are demanding these cuts, they are providing their CEO with a compensation of $9 million a year.

The one-day walkout begins at 7 a.m. Tuesday, January 31. Additionally, CNA/NNU announced today that it will hold noon rallies at Kaiser hospitals in Oakland and South Sacramento.

RNs will be striking in support of clinical psychologists, mental health workers, psychiatric social workers, and optometrists  

The nurses say they also share concerns of their co-workers about the erosion of services that affect the quality of patient care, especially in mental health, as described in the report Care Delayed, Care Denied. It asserts that Kaiser has frequently failed to comply with California laws aimed at protecting patients’ timely access to appropriate services despite receiving more than $10 billion annually from Medicare to provide a full range of services, including mental healthcare.
 
“It is disappointing that Kaiser is refusing to bargain for sufficient staffing for mental health services, and a secure retirement and accessible health coverage for its frontline caregivers, despite its record profits,” said Zenei Cortez, RN, CNA Co-President, who works at Kaiser South San Francisco. “We will continue to honor the basic tenets of nursing and stand in support of our colleagues, our patients, and communities.”

Source: nationalnursesunited.org


ARCHIVES