Today our local bargaining committee met with local KP management for our 9th day of bargaining. In the morning, our subcommittees reported out on their work. Significant progress has been made is several areas including: 

• Alternative shifts- specifically 10-hour and 12-hour shifts. We will continue to meet to work out the details 
• Training for management on our local contract. Specifically, the process for overtime granting, job bidding, and transfers and lateral moves. 

Importantly, we have additional non-economic items we are close on and we have agreed to continue to bargaining locally. 

In the afternoon, we met to discuss our local economic issues. Despite progress in our subcommittees, KP continues to drag its feet in conversations related to economics. KP still has not provided necessary information. In addition, they have not responded to our local economic proposals. This is unacceptable! 

Our workers have given everything and on the brink of another COVID-19 surge, we are enraged at Kaiser’s refusal to engage in any meaningful conversations around economics at both the local and national bargaining table. It is apparent that KP is more focused on the bottom line. At the National Table, KP has proposed to pay new employees average wages. We already do not receive equal pay for equal work and we reject Kaiser’s move to continue this unfair policy to create an underclass of workers. 

We will meet again with KP Friday, August 20, 2021 

STRONGER TOGETHER!