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GEORGE F. LEE / GLEE@STARADVERTISER.COM
Union members protested Wednesday on King Street across from Kaiser Permanente’s Honolulu Clinic.
The union representing 1,900 Kaiser Permanente Hawaii workers has called for a one-day work stoppage Thursday to protest increased employee workloads and other impacts from last month’s closure of the Honolulu Clinic Urgent Care Center.
Kaiser laid off 13 clerical and emergency tech employees when it closed the urgent care center on March 16.
The union also has been unable to reach a new labor agreement with Kaiser since the Aug. 31 expiration of its bargaining contract.
Unite Here Local 5 said the state’s largest health-maintenance organization has failed to deal with the impact on remaining workers and that patient care is suffering. The union issued a 10-day strike notice on March 24 and said about 100 workers would participate Thursday in an early-morning rally and solicit support by asking patients at Kaiser clinics on Oahu and Maui to sign a petition protesting the cuts.
Kaiser said its Moanalua Medical Center and Clinic and 18 clinics statewide will remain open for business.
