Kaiser Nurses Accept Pact for Salary Bonuses

Nurses at Kaiser Permanente Hospital in Hollywood have approved a new three-year contract with Kaiser Permanente, gaining $2,000 in salary bonuses and a wage guarantee for the registered nurses despite a one-year wage freeze.

The old pact with 900 nurses at the 600-bed medical center expired Thursday, said Kaiser spokeswoman Janice Seib.

The new agreement was approved, 608 to 40, Friday night after eight weeks of negotiations between Kaiser Permanente Medical Care Program, which operates the hospital, and the nurses’ union.

The nurses, who belong to the American Federation of Nurses, were represented by Service Employees International Union Local 535, the same union which helped striking American Red Cross nurses reach a contract settlement last month.

“We’re really happy about this particular contract,” Seib said. “We feel that it’s just really fair to both sides.”

Attempts to reach the union by telephone for comment Saturday were unsuccessful.

Seib said the contract provides for a wage freeze during the first year, but gives lump-sum payments of $1,000 to each nurse both during the second and third years of the pact.

The contract guarantees the nurses’ wages will be 4% above wages paid to nurses in the Los Angeles area, Seib said.

Also, the pact provides for nurses to have input into decision making in the areas of patient care and nursing at the medical center, she said.