Author Archive

Huffington Post: NUHW v SEIU, Kaiser workers prepare to make history

By Shirley Nelson

As Kaiser workers forming NUHW, we’ve built a website called Kaisercoworkers.org, to answer all of those questions and more with documentation and clearly-explained facts. I encourage any Kaiser worker who wants to make an informed decision in our election to visit Kaisercoworkers.org today.

I tell my co-workers that I have a simple explanation why Kaiser workers should vote to join NUHW: the wages and health benefits we have earned over decades will only be safe from SEIU’s side deals when we get our union back under our control.

Labor Notes: Decisive showdown which union will Kaiser workers choose?

By Mark Brenner

Alongside its take-no-prisoners organizing on the shop floor, SEIU is touting the two-year contract signed in June, which secured two 3 percent raises and left benefits and work rules largely intact. But many members worry their standards are still in jeopardy, because the contract establishes a committee to examine “cost containment” for health care benefits. Experts selected by Kaiser’s labor-management partnership, not members, will make recommendations on cuts, after the election, next May.

Beyond Chron: SEIU Uses Fear, Lies, and Millions to Sway Kaiser Workers

By Randy Shaw

SEIU’s Kaiser campaign may be the most expensive political campaign (per voter) in United States history. The union spent $10 million on a much smaller Fresno home health care campaign in 2009, which used 900 staff compared to a Kaiser campaign force that increases to 2,600 this week.

Having analyzed SEIU’s Kaiser campaign, I believe a $40 million estimate is clearly reasonable. But even if SEIU only spends $20 million, this would still greatly exceed the massive campaign blitz of California’s Meg Whitman. Whitman has spent over $100 million to reach 17 million voters, while SEIU will spend 20-40% of that amount to reach an electorate, Kaiser’s 44,000 workers, that is 0.2% of the size.

That means SEIU is spending between $455-$910 per vote, the equivalent of Whitman spending between $7.7 and $15.4 billion to become California’s next Governor.

Third statewide Kaiser conversation

More than 6,000 Kaiser co-workers participated in our third statewide conversation on Thursday night. If you weren’t able to join us, you can listen by clicking the play button below. Make sure you’re signed up to join the next conversation! Sept. 2 Conversation with Ralph Cornejo, NUHW’s negotiator with Kaiser management; Dannielle Estrada, a co-worker […]

NLRB puts it in writing: Our raises, benefits, and PSP are protected by law

On Aug. 26, the federal government officially charged Kaiser management with violating the law for trying to take back raises from NUHW Pros and RNs. They said our raises and benefits are protected by law, and they’ll make management pay up. National Labor Relations Board, Aug. 27, 2010 Notice“…Respondents [Kaiser] failed to maintain the established […]