UNAC/UHCP Members Take A Stand for Safe Staffing and a Fair PSP Payout

March 2016

On March 14, Coalition union members including more than 50 UNAC/UHCP activists presented thousands of petition signatures to management at the Kaiser Permanente Regional Office in Pasadena. More than 8,000 UNAC/UHCP members signed a petition asking Kaiser management to recognize our contributions and give us our Performance Sharing Program (PSP) payout. Thousands more signed the petition to address safe staffing.

UNAC/UHCP President Denise Duncan, RN, addressed the crowd:

“This is about all of you that do the work every single day to keep patients safe, to improve affordability, and the quality of service and care that you provide. Many of you have saved this organization millions of dollars. You are entitled to this payout. You worked for it and that’s our mission – to make sure that you get what you deserve. Kaiser needs to make it right.”

Registered nurses Kristen Jenkins and Jacqueline Asfall voiced concerns to Kaiser Southern CA Region President Dr. Ben Chu on behalf of UNAC/UHCP members.

“We need to address the issue of safe staffing. Nurses are not getting lunches and breaks, NICU RNs are working 20-hour shifts, and Labor & Delivery RNs are working 24-hour shifts to take care of the most fragile members of our community. Scary stuff is happening. It’s not acceptable and we demand safer staffing practices.”

– Kristen Jenkins, RN, Kaiser Orange County

“Hospitals are not adhering to staffing ratios and we face unsafe work conditions. Yet we still continue to go above and beyond. Without us, Kaiser would not have made it this far. Southern California Kaiser employees are the very people who contributed to Kaiser’s success and growth. It’s time for Kaiser to recognize our contributions and give us 100% of our PSP payout!”

– Jacqueline Asfall, RN, Kaiser Baldwin Park

UNAC/UHCP members all across Southern California have stickered up in the workplace and signed petitions letting management know they need to do their part to make it right. The power of the Coalition and frontline union members was at work on March 14 when thousands of your petition signatures were delivered directly to KP leadership.

Together, members’ actions forced a high-level meeting to continue talks on the PSP payout. Our fight for safe staffing and a fair PSP payout is not over. Stay tuned for updates and possible calls for action.

CLICK HERE to download a PDF leaflet with additional photos.