Kaiser Nurses Agree To 12 Percent Wage Hike

BAY AREA — Nurses at 21 Kaiser Permanente medical centers and dozens of other clinics and offices across Northern and Central California have reached a tentative agreement with the health system on a five-year contract.

The contract, agreed to on Friday night, will now go before the roughly 19,000 members of the California Nurses Association/National Nurses United union for ratification at a series of meetings starting next Monday and running through mid-April, union officials said.

The union said the pact includes the addition of positions to facilitate the shift of Kaiser's old computer system to a new and more complicated system, while also protects pensions and medical benefits for current and retired nurses.

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There will be a 12 percent wage increase across the board over the five years, according to the union.

"This agreement gives us a strong foundation for health security for Kaiser nurses and patients for the next five years in a turbulent time of health care in our state and nation," CAN executive director Bonnie Castillo
said in a statement.

— Bay City News; Image via Shutterstock