Kaiser Mental Health Workers Ratify Contract after 196-day Strike

After walking picket lines for more than six months in what became the longest health strike by mental health workers in U.S. history, therapists, psychiatric nurses, social workers, and psychologists employed by Kaiser Permanente in Southern California have voted overwhelmingly to ratify a contract that includes important gains for patients and clinicians.

The four-year contract is retroactive to Sept. 2024 and will expire in 2028. It includes gains that should improve the experience of receiving and delivering behavioral health care at Kaiser.

“These negotiations were like fighting a battle,” said Adriana Webb, a medical social worker at Kaiser and a member of the NUHW bargaining committee. “I’m proud of how we stuck together over six difficult months. We didn’t win everything, but we’re returning to work more connected than ever and with a greater understanding of the power we have as workers to protect our patients and ensure they get the care they’re entitled to.”