Bay Area Kaiser Permanente workers join 31,000-person strike across California and Hawaii as talks continue

Strike set to begin Monday with picket lines planned at major Northern California facilities

Union-represented nurses and other health care professionals at Kaiser Permanente facilities in the Bay Area are scheduled to join an open-ended strike beginning Monday, Jan. 26, 2026, as contract talks remain unresolved. The planned work stoppage involves about 31,000 employees across California and Hawaii represented by the United Nurses Associations of California/Union of Health Care Professionals (UNAC/UHCP).

Picket lines are planned at multiple Northern California sites, including Kaiser Permanente’s Oakland Medical Center, along with facilities in Santa Clara and Roseville. The union has said the strike will continue until a new agreement is reached.

What the dispute is about

The negotiations have focused on compensation and working conditions, including staffing levels and workplace safety. The union has framed the dispute as a combination of wage issues and conditions that it says affect the ability to deliver care, such as staffing shortages and workload pressures.

Kaiser Permanente has publicly disputed the characterization that the strike involves issues beyond wages and has maintained that bargaining has continued for months. Kaiser has also said the parties have returned to local bargaining, while the union has raised objections about the structure and conduct of negotiations, including allegations of improper interference in the bargaining process.

• Union position: The union has alleged that management undermined negotiations and engaged in conduct it considers unlawful, and it has said workplace issues—such as staffing and safety—remain central to the dispute.

• Kaiser position: Kaiser has said the core disagreement is economic and that it has remained at the table. The health system has also stated it has plans to keep services operating during the strike.

What patients in the Bay Area may notice

Kaiser Permanente has said hospitals and emergency departments will remain open and that facilities will be staffed by physicians, managers and other trained personnel, with additional licensed contract professionals as needed. Kaiser has also indicated that some non-urgent care could be shifted to remote visits and that certain appointments or elective procedures could be rescheduled.

Patients are advised to monitor appointment messages and be prepared for potential changes to non-urgent services while hospitals and emergency care remain available.

Broader context: recent Kaiser labor actions

The planned open-ended strike follows a five-day walkout in October 2025 by Kaiser Permanente workers in California and Hawaii. That stoppage ended without a publicly announced agreement and was followed by plans to resume bargaining.

Kaiser Permanente is one of the nation’s largest not-for-profit health systems, serving millions of members across multiple states through hospitals and medical offices. The outcome of current negotiations is likely to shape staffing, retention and service delivery in high-demand regions, including the Bay Area, where health systems continue to compete for clinical staff.