Updates – Page 2 – UNITE HERE Local 5

Kaiser Permanente Kona clinic workers were not getting compensated for overtime

September 19, 2021/in Updates /by prodelas

From left to right: Lisa Pang, LPN (committee leader); Frank Manley, LPN (assistant shop steward/committee leader/stakeholder); and Mary Ondra, LPN.

Kaiser Permanente Kona clinic workers were not getting compensated for overtime for late lunches or skipped lunches.

The collective bargaining agreement (CBA) language is clear on this: “If [after notifying a manager] an employee is required to work more than six (6) hours after the start of the shift without being given an uninterrupted thirty (30 minute meal period, the employee shall be paid at the applicable overtime rate for all time worked after the sixth (6th) hour until such time as the employee is given an uninterrupted thirty (30 minute meal period.”

A manager admitted she was not compensating overtime even when notified of late lunches, and she was informing staff to waive their overtime if they leave early with no lunch.

The union setup a meeting with the manager and HR. All parties agreed that workers are entitled to overtime if they follow the notification procedure, regardless of when they end their shift.

Housekeepers demand daily room cleaning for Housekeeping Appreciation Week

September 17, 2021/in Updates /by prodelas

It’s Housekeeping Appreciation Week! Local 5 housekeepers are celebrating by taking their breaks and calling on management to bring back daily room cleaning. Without daily room cleaning, fewer housekeepers are being called back to work. Thousands of jobs could be saved by reinstating daily room cleaning.

The few who are working are struggling with the workload and even skipping their breaks to finish their rooms. At some hotels, housekeepers placed band-aids on the parts of their body that they are feeling pain due to the increased difficulty of their jobs due to the elimination of daily room cleaning.

Kaiser Permanente workers celebrate another Solidarity Tuesday

September 14, 2021/in Updates /by prodelas

Local 5 stands in solidarity with HSTA

September 14, 2021/in Updates /by prodelas

Local 5 stands in solidarity with HSTA fighting for safer schools for our keiki. Hundreds of Leeward Oahu educators conducted socially distanced information picketing Tuesday afternoon to raise concerns about a lack of consistent safety protocols. We joined their picket and will continue to stand with them.

National Bargaining Update for Kaiser Permanente workers

September 10, 2021/in Updates /by prodelas

After months of stalling by Kaiser Permanente negotiators, scheduled national bargaining sessions ended today. “Because of management’s approach, these negotiations are in serious trouble – unlike anything our Alliance unions have experienced with Kaiser Permanente since the 1990’s,” said Alliance chief negotiator Hal Ruddick. “Unless management dramatically changes course, this conflict will continue to escalate. The Alliance is united, strong, and ready to stand up for our members and our patients.”