Statement by Sal Rosselli, president emeritus of the National Union of Healthcare Workers, on the the suspension of mediation aimed at settling the Kaiser Southern California Mental Health Strike, now in its fifth month “When Kaiser Permanente agreed to Gov. Newsom’s request to enter a focused mediation process, we expected that it would give our […]
Kaiser Permanente has agreed to a focused mediation process aimed at settling a strike by its nearly 2,400 Southern California mental health therapists, social workers, psychiatric nurses and psychologists.
Approved by NUHW’s member-led Executive Board, the updated resolution commits NUHW to protect the rights of all of its members and their patients, including transgender people, to be able to receive medical care and to access care without risk of being confronted by immigration agents.
The protest was the first act of civil disobedience during any NUHW Kaiser strike, and came one day after Governor Newsom requested both sides enter focused mediation.
More than 2,000 NUHW members held their first region-wide action to demand contracts that will provide market salaries and safeguard care in their communities.
After no progress during heated bargaining session Monday, workers will wait for Kaiser to agree to mediation, as first requested by Gov. Newsom, before returning to the bargaining table.
Kaiser has still not agreed to the governor’s request for focused mediation, and we are organizing allies, including elected leaders and union leaders, to ramp up the pressure on Kaiser to agree to mediation, which is how the Northern California strike was settled.
NUHW’s Executive Board has reaffirmed our Sanctuary Union status and amended our 2025 resolution in response to the Trump Administration’s attacks on immigrants, transgender, and LGBTQ+ people.
