Kaiser Permanente staff all over the country rallied together in early November, walking out on the job and protesting staff shortages as well as lower-than-desired pay. This is the largest ongoing health care strike to date, with over 75,000 workers participating.
Tualatin’s own Kaiser pharmacy staff went out on strike Nov. 1, and they were expected to continue the protest until Nov. 18. Other Kaiser pharmacies, such as the Beaverton and West Salem offices, have already reopened. Most have not been so lucky, as many medical and dental offices have had to close down. Kaiser announced that the pharmacies at Gateway, Orchards, Rockwood, Keizer Station, Salmon Creek, Sunnybrook and Tualatin will remain closed until further notice.
Kaiser administrators and the union representing the health care workers reached a contract following a three-day strike in early November. This included a 21 percent wage increase over four years, along with a minimum wage of $23 per hour, though this deal does not include the pharmacy workers. Kaiser strongly encourages its patients to use the mobile mail order option in the app; however, patients will notice a huge delay in filling prescriptions, critics say. As of press time, there is no set date that the pharmacists will return to work, but administrators believe the strike could last through November.
Alongside the Kaiser strike, Oregon has been dealing with the Portland Public Schools’ teacher strike. This strike has given a new meaning to “No School November,” as students in the PPS district have not seen a day of school yet this month. The district offered a three-year contract worth a little more than $147 million. This reflects the additional $11.8 million invested into planning time for teachers, as well as $6.5 million for stipends and pay for staff taking on extra responsibilities. The offer also included $4.5 million for workload relief. After a long weekend of negotiations, the district administration was hoping to reach an agreement that would allow students to come to school on Monday, Nov. 13, Unfortunately, no agreement was reached.
Despite this, it seems that the teachers and administrators are making progress towards a settlement. The teachers are fighting for more paid lesson planning time, more pay for teachers who have advanced degrees or teach in bilingual programs and safer school buildings, as well as fewer required meetings.
The teachers’ union presented two different proposals to the district, both including equal holidays, grading days, hard class size caps, and fewer meetings. These offers reflect the differences between both sides; when the district declined the offers, those in the union expressed their disappointment publicly.
As of press time, it is unclear how long these strikes will last or if contracts will be agreed upon anytime soon.
