President of the American Federation of Teachers, Nurses and Healthcare Professionals (AFT), Randi Weingarten, has joined the chorus of voices in support of OFNHP's recent picket at Kaiser Permanente Sunnyside Medical Center, saying that the time has come for Kaiser, and all healthcare employers, to ensure safe staffing for their healthcare professionals and patient. As an affiliate of AFT, we are part of a national network fighting for progressive change and to ensure a positive shift in our healthcare industry, and through that collaboration we are seeing this movement for healthcare justice

On January 13^th, around 200 OFNHP members, community supporters, and patients picketed outside of Kaiser Permanente Sunnyside Medical Center to demand a change. "The employer LOVES it when we are divided, because it means we are weak, and when we are weak, we lose sight of the fact that we have a common cause and a common foe,” said Nicole Brun-Cottan, a physical therapist and leader in the Pro unit. “They take the trouble to do this because they are TERRIFIED of how strong we are when we step together?”

We also projected a message on the side of both Sunnyside and the Kaiser Permanente

As of 5:15 on January 10th, the President of Oregon Federation of Nurses and Healthcare Professionals (OFNHP), Jonathon Baker, filed a "demand to bargain" setting the expectation that Kaiser Permanente negotiates with our Bargaining Unit leaders over the impacts of the recent situation with our members.

Jonathon has issued this statement upon the filing of the "demand to bargaing":

"Today, as of 5:15pm, I issued a formal Demand to Bargain on behalf of all Kaiser bargaining units to Jeff Collins, President of KPNW to bargain the impacts of unsafe staffing conditions both for our members and our

On January 3rd, the nurses and healthcare professionals at Kaiser Permanente in Oregon and Southwest Washington filed a notice of an intent to hold a picket at Sunnyside Medical Center on the afternoon of January 13th. These healthcare workers, who are members of the Oregon Federation of Nurses and Health Professionals (OFNHP), AFT Local 5017, are picketing over what they say are critically low staffing levels that have created a harmful situation for healthcare professionals and, if they continue, will spell disaster for patient care.

“As hospital admissions rise, healthcare workers are so

After the December 7th State of Emergency declaration issued by Oregon Governor Kate Brown’s office, nurses and healthcare professionals are raising concerns about how this could further exacerbate the staffing crisis. Issued with concern for how Oregon hospitals will handle the recent increase in seasonal flu and COVID-19 infections, this order allows hospitals to ration care, work with reduced staff, and make changes that they believe will assist with adequate triage. Across hospitals like Kaiser Permanente Sunnyside Medical Center and Westside Medical Center, two essential hubs of emergency

Yesterday, Governor Kate Brown issued a State of Emergency regarding the healthcare situation across Oregon. Given the dramatic rise of flu cases at the same time as the most recent COVID-19 spikes, they anticipated healthcare facilities and hospitals to be stretched beyond our previous limits. While we have been calling on employers to improve staffing at our hospitals and clinics long before COVID and now RSV. Now, we are in a massive staffing crisis all across the country, and this new order allows for our Oregon employers to disregard many of the staffing standards that we know are