Kaiser's "Partnership" Bargaining Begins as Goofy Hugs Delegates

This week, the "partnership unions" are holding their first bargaining session with Kaiser Permanente at the Manhattan Beach Marriott Hotel in Southern California (April 14-16).

Wanna have a glimpse at partnership “bargaining”?

Check out the following photos, tweets and messages from SEIU-UHW’s Dave Regan, Kaiser CEO Bernard Tyson, Kaiser Coalition Exec. Dir. Hal Ruddick, and others. They come from the "bargaining kickoff" held earlier this month (March 30-April 1) as well as the partnership unions' "Union Delegate Conference" at Disneyland (March 27-29).

Staffers from the Labor Management Partnership were so thrilled by the speeches of top union and Kaiser leaders that they tweeted excerpts to the outside world. Here's an interesting excerpt from SEIU-UHW President Dave Regan's speech: "Negotiations are not a debate and tantrums don't work."

Hmm. So if you can't actually "debate" the Boss across the bargaining table about workers' wages, health benefits, staffing levels, pensions, etc... then WTF are contract "negotiations" for? 

Hal Ruddick, the Chief Negotiator for the Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions, absolutely loved Diamond Dave's quote! In fact, he tweeted it himself. Way to go, Hal!

Here's another revealing quote from Regan: "We have chosen strategic collaboration." Here, Regan is referencing this infamous interview on NBC television, where he reported that our economy no longer has "employers" and "workers" -- only partners who work in a "teamwork economy." 

Btw, Regan really hates it when workers criticize management. (Ohh, and that goes for all of you SEIU-UHW members who are getting layoff notices from Kaiser despite the company's $3.1 billion in profits last year. Stop criticizing, dammit. Partnership really works).

Here's Ruddick, one of Regan's lieutenants, speaking to the crowd about "leading."

Here's the multi-million-dollar CEO of Kaiser, Bernard Tyson, doing a panel discussion with Hal Ruddick and Kathleen Theobald, the Executive Director of Kaiser Permanente Nurse Anesthetists Association (KPNAA), during the Union Delegates Conference.

Interestingly, even though they're management, Tyson and other Kaiser execs attended the Coalition's "Union Delegates Conference," where "delegates" are presumably supposed to prepare their bargaining strategy for negotiations with the Boss.

Instead... the partnership unions turned the delegates conference into a full-blown propaganda party for Kaiser's fatcat execs, who are systematically working to slash and burn workers' health benefits, pensions, and wages.

Here's Meg Niemi, the President of SEIU Local 49, hugging Kaiser's top HR official, Dennis Dabney. Dabney, who favors $5,000 dollar suits, decided to dress down for the workers.

Here's CEO Tyson at the Union Delegates Conference.

Check this out. The partnership unions and Kaiser even served a "partnership" cake to the delegates!

In case you're wondering... CEO Tyson had a "great" time at the Union Delegate Conference, according to his tweet.

Before the conference was over, the partnership unions placed posters of Tyson in the lobby areas of the Union Delegates Conference. Remember -- Tyson is trying to eliminate workers' pension plan even though Kaiser gives him 9 separate pension plans!

All in all, the delegates -- who are supposed to safeguard the interests of 90,000 Kaiser workers -- had a super awesome time.

And in case Regan, Ruddick and Tyson weren't entertaining enough, the LMP staff even brought along Goofy and other Disney characters to work the delegates!

Wow! This partnership sure is "innovative!"