Earlier this month the Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions staged a three-day unfair labor practice (ULP) strike in response to Kaiser’s unwillingness to seriously negotiate with the coalition in the months leading up to the contract’s expiration on September 30. The seventy-five-thousand-worker strike was the largest health care workers’ strike in US history, surpassing a strike of fifteen thousand Minnesota nurses in 2022.

By all accounts, the turnout for picket lines at Kaiser’s thirty-nine medical centers was very strong, and enthusiasm was high. Picket lines had DJs, people in costumes, drummers, and plentiful food, all of which contributed to a generally fun and energetic vibe that was only challenged by an early-fall heat wave. There were even other locals that struck in sympathy, such as Engineers and Scientists of California Local 20 members, who were very visible on the Kaiser picket lines last week despite having a contract expiration date later this month.

The coalition promised to strike again in November if progress wasn’t made in contract negotiations. Its show of force seems to have paid off. At 3:00 a.m. on Friday, October 13, the coalition reached an agreement with Kaiser that will have annual raises of 6 percent in the first year and 5 percent in the remaining three years of the four-year contract (resisting Kaiser’s goal of holding the coalition to the standard negotiated in other Kaiser contracts), a $1,500 ratification bonus, increased minimum wages for all Kaiser workers, preserved health care and other benefits (with improvements for retiree health care), and eliminated regional differences in wages (Kaiser wanted to increase regional differences).