Kaiser, union fail to narrow differences in latest talks

Kaiser Permanente Hawaii and the union representing health care workers said they didn’t make much headway on a new contract in negotiations that went late into the night Wednesday.

The Wednesday negotiations were the first in four months.

Unite Here! Local 5, representing 1,900 Kaiser employees who have been working without a contract for more than two years, organized a six-day strike earlier this month. The union objects to what it calls low proposed wage increases and a proposal to eliminate guaranteed pensions for new employees.

Local 5 has also protested understaffing after Kaiser shut down its urgent care department at the Hono­lulu Clinic in March 2013 and laid off some workers. The union said it has lost 121 Kaiser workers since 2012 due to staffing cuts.

"It does not seem as if Kaiser, leading up to even (Wednesday night), was serious about coming to the table with a serious intent in terms of addressing some of these concerns around workload and patient care and of course the pension proposal," said Local 5 spokes­man Cade Wata­nabe.

He said the union, however, is looking at additional dates to return to the bargaining table. The last time the company and union met for negotiations was in October.

"We have approached the negotiations by listening carefully and bargaining in good faith to reach agreement," Kaiser said in a statement. "We believe that bargaining should consider both the needs of our employees, and what will best help our organization meet the needs of our members and patients. And we know that our competitive wage and benefits including retirement will support our ability to attract and retain staff. Because we have not reached an agreement yet, we remain committed to resuming negotiations as soon as possible."

The union said Kaiser’s last offer included proposed wage increases of 4 percent over three years. That compares with a 14 percent pay raise for about 18,000 Kaiser nurses in Cali­for­nia who went on a two-day strike in November.

The Kaiser employees include licensed practical nurses, medical assistants and housekeepers.

During the strike from Feb. 2 to 7, Kaiser blamed workers picketing in front of its medical facilities for delaying patient care by blocking drivers as they tried to get to their appointments, though the union has denied those allegations.

The state’s largest HMO closed 10 of its smaller clinics on Oahu and the neighbor islands during the strike and rescheduled elective procedures and nonurgent appointments while consolidating resources to its larger medical facilities.

This was the first statewide strike for Local 5 Kaiser members since 1986.

CORRECTION: Kaiser Permanente issued a statement Thursday regarding negotiations. An earlier version of this article and the Friday print edition version said the company did not return calls seeking comment.