May 21st
Your bargaining team returned to the table yesterday for our sixth session — and we’re bringing the heat.
Yesterday's focus: The Economic Package.
Your survey responses came through loud and clear: It’s time for meaningful wage increases that reflect our value, experience, and the high-quality care we provide every single day.
While across-the-board raises are being addressed at the national level, our local bargaining team is taking bold action to secure improvements right here in our local contract. We’ve proposed:
- Historic increases to hourly wages to align with current market rates.
- Additional wage step increases to honor years of service and long-term dedication.
- New longevity steps designed to retain highly skilled, seasoned RDHs.
- Expanded and enhanced differentials to recognize specialty roles, leadership, mentorship, and advanced skills.
We also advanced proposals based on other top priorities, including:
- Improved bereavement leave — more days, inclusive of diverse family structures, with added travel time.
- Vacation enhancements tied to longevity milestones.
- Guaranteed pay for missed rest and meal breaks, in alignment with state and federal laws.
- Double-time pay for working consecutive days.
- Clearer language regarding job classifications and roles.
Management presented a proposal related to submitting vacation requests, which we are carefully reviewing before offering a counter.
We want you to know our bargaining team is showing up prepared, united, and relentless. We’ve brought forward more than twice as many proposals as management — demonstrating our clear vision, strong preparation, and unwavering commitment to securing a strong contract for our members.
While we did receive a counterproposal on some of the language surrounding flex and float holidays, there is still a great deal of work ahead before we reach meaningful agreements on many of the proposals.
We are committed to fighting for a contract that makes Kaiser Permanente the best place to work — a contract that values our contributions and delivers real, lasting improvements to our working conditions.
Let’s keep up the momentum. Our next bargaining session is on Friday May 30th.
Join us for our next Virtual Tele Town Hall on Sunday, June 1st at 6:00 p.m. for updates and live Q&A.
Topic: RDH Town Hall
Time: Jun 1, 2025 06:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/83761470471?pwd=NgeiskkbMWV9og8j4JlOxmcaNd9vHn.1
Meeting ID: 837 6147 0471
Passcode: OFNHP
May 14th
Our Bargaining Team returned to the table for the fifth session with management—and we want you to know, loud and clear: we hear you. Our members' voices, concerns, and experiences are the driving force behind every proposal we bring forward. We're not only ensuring that we're being heard—we are fighting for us!
Hygiene Task Force Update:
We opened our bargaining session on May 14th with a report-out from both sides regarding the Hygiene Task Force. Labor delivered a powerful message and voiced our frustration with the lack of meaningful progress made on this issue. Our members continue to report working into rest and meal breaks and are accumulating unwanted overtime due to the increased demands of the new templates—templates that were rolled out without adequate planning, support, or resources.
We are hearing daily from our members through ADOs, communications, and stewards and the message is clear: both our patient care and our members’ well-being are being compromised by these changes. While much of the Task Force’s work has been focused on reviewing data, we emphasized the urgent need for action—not just analysis. After caucusing, management acknowledged our concerns and committed to scheduling a dedicated meeting within the next week to address these concerns. We also informed management that 60-minute-only templates are still being offered to individual providers, which is both inequitable and a violation of our agreement. These templates should be used only on turbo-hygiene days, when all providers have equal opportunity and assignments follow Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) guidelines. As of this yesterday we've been assured this practice will be discontinued—a clear communication has been issued to stop the practice.
Proposals & Progress at the Table:
On-Call Proposal: We’ve temporarily tabled management’s on-call proposal as we gather more input from our members to craft a counter-proposal that’s tailored to our needs and the realities of the care we provide. We understand the importance of ensuring any future language is in the best interest of our patients while maintaining a healthy work-life balance for our members.
Flexible & Core Part-Time Scheduling: This proposal is about empowering our members. It allows more flexibility, better work-life balance, and the ability to adjust our hours at key milestones without sacrificing our role or benefits. Management has tabled this issue for now, citing “shared decision-making” concerns, but we’re not backing down. We’ll keep pushing because we deserve options that fit our life.
Nitrous Proposal: RDHs with nitrous oxide permits deserve fair compensation and recognition for the skill, responsibility, and training it requires. Our counter-proposal includes a differential, adequate appointment time, and reimbursement for certification costs. Our counter-proposal is about respecting our advanced competencies and ensuring we’re compensated for services that benefit patients and the organization.
Personal Flexible Days & Float Holidays: We proposed eliminating outdated “Personal Days” language that is no longer in practice and replacing it with clear, updated contract language for Flex and Float Holidays. Additionally, we sought enhancements to Float Holidays at key service milestones, recognizing that we deserve to be rewarded for retention and commitment. While management responded with some modifications, they rejected the proposal for additional Float Holidays. This topic remains open for further discussion. We firmly believe that establishing clear and consistent contract language for these two types of leave benefits both labor and management. This long-standing issue presents an important opportunity to bring clarity, continuity, and fairness to our contract.
New Proposals:
Education Leave and Professional Development: We’re fighting for real investment in our growth and success. We introduced a proposal to expand education leave, enhance CE support, and include reimbursements for license renewals, certifications, professional memberships, and essential accessories, like loupes and protective wear. This is about recognizing our expertise and supporting our excellence.
Management introduced proposals to revise language in the grievance process and limit PTO requests around holidays. We’re reviewing these carefully to ensure our rights remain protected.
We’ll return to the table on Wednesday, May 21st. In the meantime, we all need to show our unity by wearing red on Tuesdays and bargaining days and remember to take photos with your Alliance signs and either post them on social media with the hashtag #onevoiceonefuture or email them to our Communications department (SBurley@ofnhp.org) to have them posted on OFNHP social media. Your support matters—it gives our entire bargaining team strength at the table.
Save the Date: Join Our Next RDH Tele-Town Hall
Sunday, June 1st at 6:00 PM (PT)
Join us for updates, Q&A, and a chance to connect.
Time: Jun 1, 2025 06:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/83761470471?pwd=NgeiskkbMWV9og8j4JlOxmcaNd9vHn.1
Meeting ID: 837 6147 0471
Passcode: OFNHP
In solidarity,
Your RDH Bargaining Team
April 21st and 23rd
The RDH Bargaining Team returned to the table this week for Rounds three and four of negotiations—and we’ve made some progress!
We kicked off the week by signing two Tentative Agreements (TAs):
1. Gender-Neutral Language: Updating contract language to reflect inclusivity.
2. Seniority Language Reorder: This change prioritizes core providers in submitting additional straight time availability up to 18 weeks out, which creates more opportunities for core staff to see their own panel of patients.
We also engaged in in-depth discussions on one of labor’s key proposals: offering flexible and core part-time scheduling options that promote work-life balance, including the ability to downcode hours at key longevity milestones.
While labor emphasized the importance of putting language into the contract to ensure and honor real flexibility and work-life balance, management expressed hesitation. Management prefers to retain full discretion over positions and postings and instead asked labor to “trust” that these discussions will continue to take place in staffing committees. Management suggests we develop creative scheduling options and bring them forward through that committee.
In a strategic move, management packaged our flexibility proposal into one of their key proposals: changes to the current on-call language. They responded to labor’s proposal by introducing three different schedule types and shift options—none of which are enforceable—while proposing new on-call language that significantly increases availability from existing language.
We emphasized that the on-call role has long been the only viable option for our Dental Hygienists who cannot maintain full-time or 10-hour shift schedules. This underscores the critical need to secure contractual language that guarantees real and enforceable flexibility/work-life balance—not just informal conversations or promises.
To date, management has not agreed to any contract language proposals around flexible scheduling for our members.
Other Key Highlights This Week:
- Exchanged several proposals.
- Labor submitted clarification language around CE Leave, Float Holiday, and Flex Personal Day (FPD aka Flex Time).
- Management introduced a new proposal: Mandatory use of Nitrous Oxide—another one of management’s key priorities.
In Summary:
- Two were Tentative Agreements Signed
- Two of Management’s Proposals are on the Table
- Five of Labor’s Proposals are on the Table
Join Us: Tele-Town Hall – This Sunday, April 27th at 6:00 PM!
Topic: RDH Town Hall
Time: Apr 27, 2025 06:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/82535969995?pwd=V5S2PLZciQPfvw6um0cVGXQKdckIYB.1
Meeting ID: 825 3596 9995
Passcode: OFNHP
This Sunday’s tele-town hall will be especially important as we unpack the details of management’s key proposals that could significantly impact working conditions. We strongly encourage every member to attend, especially our on-calls, for updates, get your feedback, and live Q&A.
Our next bargaining session is on Wednesday, May 14, 2025.
April 7th
Yesterday, the RDH bargaining team reconvened with management to continue negotiations, share interests, and exchange proposals. At the start of the session, our team introduced three proposals reflecting prior conversations: adopting gender-neutral contract language, streamlining seniority provisions, and aligning contract expiration dates with other bargaining units for clarity and consistency. While management chose to table all three proposals, they expressed verbal support for implementing gender-neutral language.
Throughout the day, both parties presented proposals, some addressing shared priorities and others reflecting individual interests. Management raised topics including on-call availability and around clarifying bargaining unit position definitions. Labor proposed schedule flexibility changes and the creation of core part-time positions.
While no Tentative Agreements (TAs) were reached during yesterday’s session, we remain steadfast in our commitment to achieving the best outcomes for our patients and our bargaining unit members.
Our next bargaining sessions are April 21st and 23rd, so make sure to wear red on those days.
March 20th
Yesterday, your RDH bargaining team met with management for our first negotiation session. In our opening statement, we made one thing clear: Our patients and communities deserve the highest quality of care—and that starts with a strong contract that empowers frontline healthcare professionals.
We reinforced to management that respect, competitive wages, safe working conditions, adequate appointment times, flexible schedules, manageable workloads, work-life balance, career growth opportunities, and the necessary resources to perform our jobs effectively are non-negotiable.
After exchanging interests, we immediately jumped into the top concern impacting both our dental hygienists and patients—the hygiene templates. We demanded urgent action and secured an agreement to establish a labor-management task force with decision-makers at the table by this Friday. This group will start meeting immediately and biweekly, addressing key issues head-on and reporting back within sixty days. If meaningful progress isn’t made, we will escalate our demands for contract language that enforces change.
Stay informed and engaged—join our tele-town hall this Sunday for updates and live Q&A.
Our next bargaining session is Monday, April 7, 2025.
In unity,
RDH Bargaining Team