UFCW 3000 Member Story: Vanessa Wixom

Vanessa Wixom and her daughter enjoy some time outdoors

Vanessa Wixom works as a Pharmacy Tech at the Riverfront location for Kaiser Permanente in Spokane Washington.  Vanessa is a fantastic leader in her workplace, and is always very proactive she and her coworkers have concerns by making sure that their rights as union workers are respected by Kaiser.  Outside of work Vanessa is a mom, loves spending time with her family, and enjoying the outdoors with the gorgeous Northwest scenery in Eastern Washington.  Vanessa’s love for the outdoors has led her to be a volunteer for the local River/Park cleanups in Spokane to make sure that others can enjoy them.  Thank you for all of your hard work Vanessa!

UFCW 3000 Member Story: Krystal Krotzer

Krystal Krotzer beams over the win of retro pay for her and her coworkers!

Shop steward Krystal Krotzer works as a pharmacy tech for Kaiser Permanente in Spokane. As a leader, Krystal took on an arduous fight with her union rep to get Kaiser to make good on owed retroactive pay dating back to December 2021. She helped gather evidence for the group grievance and didn’t give up until her coworkers got paid. Moving forward Krystal’s stewardship will be much appreciated by her fellow Kaiser union members. Good work Krystal!

Kaiser Spokane Pharmacy Techs Tentative Agreement Reached on local and national bargains

Kaiser Spokane Pharmacy Techs

Tentative Agreement Reached on local & national bargains!

After months of bargaining and organizing together for a first contract, your Spokane Pharmacy Tech Bargaining Team has reached a tentative agreement with Kaiser on a local collective bargaining agreement and a National Agreement through the Alliance of Health Care Unions. We are very excited to tell you that these agreements include the following:

• The Western Washington Wage Scale

• Maintain Your Current Retirement Plan

• COMPETITIVE ACROSS THE BOARD WAGE INCREASES each year and bonuses through the Performance Sharing Program 3% 2021; 3% 2022; 2% + 2% bonus 2023; 2% + 2% bonus 2024

• Additional Step Wage Increases each year

• Retiree Medical $1,000 per year of service

• Education Benefits locally and Nationally

• New Premiums, Benefits, and Differentials

• Just Cause Protections and Grievance Procedure

• Specific language to address Spokane issues including on-call shifts, floating, vacation requests and so much more!

The full details of the offer will be made available during our In-Person vote meetings on December 6. You must be present in-person and a member in good standing to be eligible to vote on the contract.

Kaiser Spokane Pharmacy Tech Vote Meetings Monday December 6, drop-in 7-10AM & 5–8PM

UFCW 21 Spokane Office: 2805 N. Market St., Spokane, WA 99207

Please contact Union Representative Maureen Hatton with any questions, 509-340-7370.

Kaiser Spokane Pharmacy Techs Spokane Wages pushed to National Table

Kaiser Spokane Pharmacy Techs

Spokane Wages pushed to National Table

“We are not backing down- it’s unacceptable for Kaiser to expect us to be the only Union employees in Spokane to have inferior wages to Western Washington. Join us in solidarity and wear our Yellow and Blue Ribbons every Tuesday until we reach a fair contract!”
- Bargaining Team: Jackie McFarlen & Tiffany Yeates

After months of bargaining, we were not able to reach final agreement locally on a wage scale and retirement for Spokane Pharmacy Techs. UFCW21 and all Unions within the Alliance of Health Care Unions are UNITED that there should be ONE wage scale for each Region at Kaiser. In Washington- this has always been true- OPEIU 8 and SEIU1199 members in Spokane are on the same wage scale as their coworkers in Western Washington. Spokane Pharmacy Techs deserve the same respect and equity- especially when so many of us have given our careers to Group Health and Kaiser. National Benefits has not yet agreed to let us maintain our current Retirement plan. Both issues have been pushed to the National Table and the Alliance, with 55,000 members, has said there is no National Deal until Spokane issues are settled.

All UFCW 21 contracts are now at the National Table- Pro Tech Optical, Pharmacy, and Spokane Pharmacy Techs- pushing together for benefit improvements to make us comparable to other Regions.

We are united for:

• Improved Medical Costs like the Northwest Region

• Increase Retiree Medical for years of service (WA $350/yr of service, other Regions up to $2500/yr of service)

• Local Market Adjustments

• Education Benefits

• One Wage Scale for Region

Kaiser is pushing everywhere in the country for a Two Tiered Wage Scale and has proposed 1% Across the Board Increases. With little progress- we are moving forward with Action for September and October. We’re ready to fight for our patients and all health care workers.

TAKE ACTION TO WIN A GREAT NATIONAL AND SPOKANE CONTRACT

UNION SOLIDARITY TUESDAYS

Every Tuesday, Union members are wearing union colors until we win a fair contract. In Spokane- our stewards have made Yellow and Blue ribbons for all Techs. They will take them to all Clinics- please wear them every Tuesday in Solidarity! Take a photo wearing them together and post it on social media with the hashtag #BestJobsBestCare. Remember to tag KP @KPThrive and @UFCW21

SIGN THE PETITION

Tell KP to invest in patient care and health care workers. Sign and share the petition. Share it co-workers and friends on social media. tinyurl.com/kaiser-petition

LOCAL ACTIONS

Join the Contract Action Team meeting Wednesday, September 22 at 6:00pm via zoom! Zoom links available in the email update or contact your Rep!

Kaiser Spokane Pharmacy Techs - Bargaining Economics

Last week our bargaining team reached new tentative agreements on Floating and incentives for employees to volunteer to travel to other Clinics for unexpected absences. We started important conversations on negotiating our wage scale and addressing wage inequities and credit for experience as a Pharmacy Tech. Our team is united that there should be one wage scale for all workers in Washington- this will allow us to retain and recruit staff in Spokane and know that our work is valued. 

Our next bargaining session is scheduled for August 12 and we are scheduling additional dates in August. 

National Negotiations begin on August 13 for future Across the Board wage increases and to address benefits through the Alliance of Health Care Unions such as Retiree Medical, Education, and our Healthcare.

“We are excited about the agreements we have reached so far and are looking forward to discussing wages and equity for our experience and dedication with Kaiser.” 

– Jackie McFarlen and Tiffany Yeates, Bargaining Team

For questions, please reach out to the Bargaining Team or Union Representative Maureen Hatton, 509-340-7370.

Kaiser Spokane Pharmacy Techs - Onward to Economics

We reached new tentative agreements last week on Weekend and Holiday Standby Shifts, Vacation Requests, and Seniority. The Standby shift language includes 1 ½ premium when called-in, and that will help incentivize us to sign up and work the shifts where we need staffing coverage. 

Our next bargaining sessions will be in June and July and we will focus on float issues and economics—we are working hard to confirm dates as soon as possible. 

“We are continuing to move forward in a positive direction and are excited to finally dig into economics—working towards a wage scale that rewards our experience and dedication with Kaiser.” 

– Jackie McFarlen and Tiffany Yeates, Bargaining Team

In the following weeks, you will also start receiving updates on National Bargaining—one of the Spokane Techs will join members in Western WA and the Alliance of Healthcare Unions to push for improvements to Education benefits, Bonuses, Retiree Medical Benefits, and other benefits under the National Agreement.

Questions, please reach out to the Bargaining Team or Union Representative Maureen Hatton, 509-340-7370.

For more information on the Covid Vaccine, Common Questions, and finding vaccine appointments in Spokane.

Kaiser Spokane Pharmacy Techs - Positive Gains in Bargaining

On April 29, bargaining went well as we continued negotiations and had a robust session that led to some agreements. These positive conversations around key topics are leading the way for us to have a fair contract. 

We are excited to say as we ended the day of bargaining, we had agreements on Rest and Meal Periods and Stand-by pay.  We continue to talk about Vacation PTO, Floats and Staffing, and Alternative work schedules to include daily overtime. We feel confident that these few topics will be agreed upon early in our next session and we will head to economics.  

Questions or ideas to share, please reach out to the Bargaining Team or Union Representative Maureen Hatton at 509-340-7370

“We are optimistic about the forward movement in bargaining as our seniority and time of service was acknowledged by management showing us we that our voices are valued.” 

– Jackie McFarlen and Tiffany Yeates, Bargaining Team

Kaiser Spokane Pharmacy Techs - Progress on Our Issues

On April 15, our Bargaining Team met with Kaiser to continue negotiating on important language issues. We made gains in conversations regarding seniority dates and highlighted how important this is to members. We worked collaboratively to make improvements to the Vacation PTO request process. Our team discussed weekend on-call shifts and industry standards on standby pay and call-in premiums. Other top issues worked on include daily overtime and scheduling and lunches/breaks. A big thank you to everyone  who shared feedback regarding preferences for breaks- this helped our team to work through ideas and solutions to make sure everyone is getting their breaks. 

The Union proposal to maintain our current retirement plan is currently being reviewed by the Kaiser National Benefits Department and we will share more details soon.
Our next bargaining date is scheduled for April 29 and the entire day will focus on the topics of Floats and Staffing. 

Questions or ideas to share, please reach out to the Bargaining Team or Union Representative Maureen Hatton at 509-340-7370

“We are excited that we are pushing forward! It’s motivating to see movement and we look forward to talking to everyone as we prepare for the next session.” 

– Jackie McFarlen and Tiffany Yeates, Bargaining Team

Kaiser Spokane Pharmacy Techs - Know Your Rights and Union

Thanks to everyone who joined us on Thursday for a great meeting! We talked about what was accomplished at the last bargaining session and discussed questions related to retirement, dues, NLRB election, and seniority in Spokane.  

Our next bargaining dates with Kaiser are scheduled for April 1, 15, and 29. Between now and then, the Pharmacy Tech Bargaining Team will meet with benefit experts at Kaiser and the Alliance of Health Care Unions to compare retirement and healthcare plans—Union vs. Non-Union. 

The NLRB Election to determine if we will be represented by UFCW 21 will take place by mail over the next four weeks. Ballots will be sent out by mail by March 8, and must be returned to the NLRB Regional Office by no later than 3:00 PM on April 5, 2021. The ballots will be counted, and election results determined on April 7. If you do not receive your ballot, you may call the NLRB Region 19 Office at 206-220-6300 and ask for the information officer to request a ballot. 

It’s important for everyone to have accurate and up to date information—and that happens best when people are involved in each Clinic. Join us for our next meeting to learn more about your rights and Union—we hope to see there!  We will have a short training and an open space to talk about issues as a group.

For questions or more information, please contact Union Representative Maureen Hatton at 509-340-7370.  

---

Kaiser Spokane Pharmacy Techs:
Know your Rights and Union!
Wednesday, March 17
6:45 – 7:45 pm

Contact your Bargaining Team or Union Rep for call-in details. Details will be also emailed out.