Over 75,000 Workers to Strike at Health Facilities Across US

On Wednesday, workers at Kaiser Permanente, the U.S. largest health-care organization, began a strike that is expected to see more than 75,000 union members walk out of hospitals and medical offices after the company and labor leaders failed to resolve a dispute over staffing levels.

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"The Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions has described the work stoppage as the largest strike of health-care workers in U.S. history," reported CNBC. The strike targets Kaiser hospitals and medical offices in California, Colorado, Oregon, Virginia, the District of Columbia, and Washington state. 

The striking workers include vocational nurses, emergency department technicians, radiology technicians, X-ray technicians, respiratory therapists, medical assistants, and pharmacists.

They are demanding safer working environments, as they argue that the shortage of personnel is compromising patient care and pushing many workers to their limits after the pandemic.

The striking workers belong to eight unions, representing 40 percent of Kaiser Permanente's total workforce, a company that operates 39 hospitals and over 700 medical offices.

Kaiser Permanente has stated its willingness to "continue negotiating with the coalition" until a "fair and equitable agreement" is reached. This strike is temporary and will end on Saturday.

However, according to SEIU-UHW, the largest union in the coalition, a "longer and stronger" strike could occur in November if no agreement is reached.

This healthcare strike comes at a time when the United States is experiencing one of the largest strikes in the history of the automotive sector.

Currently, around 25,000 workers from General Motors, Ford, and Stellantis have walked out of their jobs due to the lack of an agreement on their collective bargaining agreements.