Strikers Receive Support from Rock Star and WeHo City Councilmember
Eight mental health care workers ended their five-day hunger strike Saturday, surrounded by colleagues, clergy, and community supporters, after staging the protest to demand better treatment for providers and patients within Kaiser Permanente.
The workers, represented by the National Union of Healthcare Workers (NUHW), have fasted since April 8 to press home their demands for equitable pay, the reinstatement of pension benefits removed for new employees in 2015, and guaranteed time between therapy sessions for patient documentation and follow-up care.
The hunger strike, part of a broader strike that began in October, marked a dramatic escalation in the longest mental health strike in U.S. history. While striking clinicians, including therapists and counselors, spent their days picketing outside Kaiser’s Sunset Boulevard medical center, the hunger strikers spent nights sleeping on air mattresses in a shared room at a West Hollywood church, taking turns using a bathroom and showering at a nearby motel.
“Our workloads are so packed, we barely have time to eat or go to the bathroom,” one therapist said during the strike. “We’re simply asking for the time and respect necessary to do our jobs well.”
Union leaders say Kaiser’s mental health professionals are paid up to 40% less than similarly trained employees in other departments, such as occupational therapists or radiologic technologists.
Kaiser Permanente spokesperson Terry Kanakri said in a statement to Cal Matters, “Despite the persistent efforts of NUHW to mislead the public, the Department of Managed Health Care (DMHC) has not identified new deficiencies in our mental health care.” The statement added that Kaiser had met “last week in our first quarterly review and demonstrated the extraordinary progress we have made on all the deficiencies outlined in the Corrective Action Work Plan.”
Over the course of the week, the hunger strikers were visited by fellow Kaiser employees, patients, and elected officials, including Congresswoman Sydney Kamlager-Dove and West Hollywood City Councilmember John M. Erickson, who offered support earlier Friday. Members of UNAC/UHCP, another healthcare union, conducted wellness checks throughout the week.
Tom Morello, guitarist of Rage Against the Machine and a prominent labor rights advocate, also made a surprise visit earlier in the week to perform for strikers and show solidarity.
The NUHW’s primary demands in contract negotiations include:
- Mandated breaks between appointments to allow for patient care coordination
- Restoration of pension benefits cut in 2015
- Cost-of-living wage adjustments
Talks between NUHW and Kaiser were reportedly scheduled to begin again on April 15.
