How’s SEIU-UHW’s Dave
Regan responding to Kaiser Permanente’s decision to block SEIU-UHW
from participating in Kaiser’s upcoming national bargaining with its
“partnership unions”?
Diamond Dave is not happy, to put
it mildly.
One day after Kaiser issued
a December 12th memo announcing its decision, Regan showed up outside
Kaiser Oakland (Calif.) Medical Center to hand out leaflets to workers and
passersby.
Looks like Kaiser struck a chord,
right?
It’s probably the first time in 20 years that Regan has actually
leafleted workers.
As Regan posed for photos in front
of the hospital, SEIU-UHW publicized his presence on its Twitter page. Here’s
one tweet: “We are not going to let Kaiser shut down our voice by excluding us
from collective bargaining.”
In a second tweet, Regan hints he
may sue Kaiser to try to get a seat at the bargaining table. “We don’t think
Kaiser’s attempt to exclude us from bargaining will stand, legally,” reads the
following Tweet.
Of course, Regan’s track record in
the courtroom doesn't offer much hope.
Meanwhile, lots of SEIU-UHW members
are contacting Tasty to say they don’t understand what’s going on and to report they’re getting little information from their union.
Finally, while Regan hands out
leaflets, the remaining “partnership” unions are preparing for upcoming
national bargaining with Kaiser. Along with beaucoup “instant recesses,” the "partnership" unions will negotiate a “national agreement” covering 28 unions representing approximately
100,000 workers in multiple states. The current “national agreement” was
negotiated in 2015 and expires on September 30, 2018.
