Kaiser mental health strike: Aug. 26

NewsAugust 26, 2022

Our strike lines today remained strong and spirited. KTVU covered us in the Bay Area, several patients stopped by to offer their support, and we helped several patients file complaints with the state.

This is the longest mental health care strike in history. We know it’s not easy. But, at the end of the day, it will be easier to stand together on the picket line than to return to work at Kaiser knowing that workloads will still be unsustainable, patients will still be waiting far too long for care, and Kaiser executives will still think they can get away with treating behavioral health as second class.

We’re approaching a make or break moment. Either our strike will be successful, and we’ll make Kaiser fundamentally change, or Kaiser will never change.

Kaiser executives know they’re in trouble; they’re trying to buy themselves time. They’re telling everybody who’ll listen — desperate managers, state regulators, top elected officials — that come Monday people will cross the picket line en masse.

We have to prove them wrong. It’s a cliche, but actions speak louder than words. If our numbers remain strong on Day 15, we’re showing Gov. Newsom and everyone else, that there is a mental health crisis at Kaiser that needs to be addressed. If people cross the line, we’re sending everyone the message that the status quo is good enough.

The strike shouldn’t have to last this long. It shouldn’t be this hard to make Kaiser do the right thing, but we’ve already done so much incredibly hard work, and we’ve never been closer to forcing real change from Kaiser. Let’s head out to the picket lines on Monda and show everyone that those Kaiser executives didn’t know what they were talking about.

Financial support

If you need financial support to sustain the strike, please fill out the form at nuhw.org/tempinfo. We can discuss a number of options, including possible temporary per diem work with behavioral health practices we’ve reached out to.

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