2 Bay Area unions vote to join Kaiser workers in planned Oct. strike

OAKLAND — Two Bay Area labor unions representing scientists, engineers, health care and office workers have approved a sympathy strike to join Kaiser Permanente workers’ strike Oct. 4-6, Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers West announced Saturday.

SEIU-UHW members include frontline workers such as respiratory care practitioners, dietary, environmental services and nursing staff at Kaiser hospitals.

The two unions joining the SEIU-UHW strike represent office, technical and professional employees at Kaiser, as well as clinical lab scientists, home health therapists, optometrists, genetic counselors and others.

The Engineers and Scientists of California Local 20 has nearly 8,000 members while Office and Professional Employees International Union Local 29 represents nearly 6,000 workers.

“We appreciate [their] willingness to stand with us as we protest unfair labor practices committed by Kaiser in local bargaining against SEIU-UHW and its members,” said Erica Chinchilla, a respiratory therapist at Kaiser Antioch.

Unions in Oregon, Southwest Washington, Colorado, Virginia, Maryland, and Washington, D.C., which are part of the Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions, are also planning unfair labor practices strikes at the same time.

A Kaiser Permanente spokesperson could not be reached for comment.