Therapists on strike refuse Kaiser’s offer as contract dispute enters second month

Any sign of a quick resolution to a month and a half long strike by Kaiser Permanente therapists evaporated late Saturday after union members overwhelmingly rejected a contract offer by the healthcare giant in a dispute over staffing and long wait times for those seeking mental health services.

National Union of Healthcare Workers members voted 1,349 to 222 to refuse a deal from Kaiser, a sign that negotiators may be weeks or even months from coming to an agreement and further disrupting therapy appointments that union researchers estimate has affected thousands of patients.

At the center of the drawn-out quarrel is how many “administrative” hours the therapists are entitled to for documentation and planning. NUHW members are proposing an increase in those hours, claiming that they’ve been stretched thin by their required time with patients.

The company, however, argues that time spent away from patients would have negative impacts on mental health needs. Kaiser has previously stated that it’s experienced a dramatic surge in demand for its therapy services.

On Saturday, the company agreed to pay increases for the therapists but the negotiating parties couldn’t come to an agreement over administrative hours.

NUHW member Chelsea Wise-Diangson said Sunday she’s confident the rejection of the offer will spark a deal.

“We hope this means Kaiser will return to the bargaining table,” she said.

A spokesperson for Kaiser did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Earlier this month, the company called the strike “unnecessary” and described the union’s negotiating tactics as as “aggressive.”

“It is time for this strike to end,” Kaiser spokesperson Karl Sonkin wrote on Sept. 15. “We have sincerely listened to our therapists’ priorities and responded to the demands of their union representatives. We have asked the union to take our offer to our employees and let their voices be heard.”

Workers involved in the strike include psychologists, marriage and family therapists, social workers and chemical dependency counselors.

On Aug. 15, roughly half of the NUHW’s 4,000 Kaiser mental health members began participating in the action. That number has now decreased to about 1,000, according to the NUHW.

The healthcare company currently serves 4.5 million people in the Northern California region.