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Coalition Joint Staffing

The 2023 National Agreement between the Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions and Kaiser Permanente sets out a timeline for implementing our long-standing joint staffing language. The joint staffing process is an important component in our shared commitment to making Kaiser Permanente the best place to receive care. Our new agreement requires that all departments, through their unit-based teams, have structured joint staffing and budget discussions by end of August 2025, and annually thereafter. Achieving this outcome will require the full power of partnership.

 

Lab Team Pokes at Processes and Gets Results
  • Documenting and tracking the time to complete each step in the process  
  • Identifying workflow bottlenecks
  • Reviewing staffing and tweaking schedules

What can your team do to examine and improve your workflow? How do you think that would affect care and service for our member and patients?

Laureen Lazarovici Tue, 07/30/2019 - 14:32

Meet Your National Agreement: Sick Leave HRA Rewards Good Attendance

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If you're covered by one of the national agreements between Kaiser Permanente and the Partnership unions, you may be eligible to convert your unused banked sick leave to a Health Reimbursement Account (HRA) when you retire from Kaiser Permanente. You can use the Sick Leave HRA to help pay for eligible out-of-pocket medical, dental, vision and hearing care expenses on a tax-free basis.    

The Sick Leave HRA gives you a strong incentive to bank your unused sick time and helps ensure that you will have sick time when you need it. This benefit is separate from and in addition to the Retiree Medical HRA established as part of the retiree medical benefits package in the 2021 Alliance National Agreement and the 2019 Coalition National Agreement.  

See the Retirement Programs section of your Summary Plan Description on MyHR for details:

  • Select your region.
  • When the Benefits by Employee Group page opens, click on View under Summary Plan Description.
  • Once the file opens, click on Retirement Programs from the menu on the left.
  • Look for details for the Sick Leave Health Reimbursement Account.

If that benefit is not included in your Summary Plan Description, you are not covered by the benefit.

Need an Idea? Borrow One!

Fighting the Plague of Too Many Sick Days

  • Surveying employees about attendance policies
  • Creating guidelines around sick days, tardiness and dangling (not filling out time cards)
  • Rewarding successful employees with a formal lunch

What can your team do to reward and recognize one another?

 

Too Many Sick Days? Use Carrots, Not Sticks

  • Creating a rewards and recognition program for perfect attendance
  • Educating and coaching staff about attendance, improving communication and rebuilding trust
  • Creating flexible schedules, approving last-minute vacation requests and working to raise morale

What can your team do to reward and recognize one another? 

 

Alternatives to Calling in Sick

  • Highlighting options for taking days off, such as life balance days, vacation time and the Family and Medical Leave Act
  • Encouraging a Thrive culture and extending lunch hours to allow for walks and fresh air
  • Hosting monthly wellness potlucks to bond and build team unity

What can your team do to ensure employees know about the benefits and policies that affect them? 

It Pays to Share Your Schedules

  • Sharing scheduling data with collaborative departments
  • Setting boundaries to respect the other department’s needs and processes, like avoiding late-day appointments
  • Writing it down and gettng consensus so everyone can follow the procedure

What can your team do to work collaboratively with a sister department to improve the patient experience? 

TOOLS

Highlights of the 2015 National Agreement

Format/sizes:

  • PDF (two pages, 8.5" x 11")
  • PPT (18-slide deck)
  • Small infographic (sized to print on 8.5" x 14" paper)
  • Large infographic (sized to print on 11" x 17" paper)

Intended audience:
Frontline workers, managers and physicians 

Best used:
Brief text and graphics give an overview of key provisions of the 2015 National Agreement. Choose the format that works best for you!

Related tools:
Negotiating in Partnership: A Case Study
2005 National Agreement Summary
Employment and Income Security Clarification
LMP Insider Print — December 2023
LMP Insider Print — January 2024
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Best Place to Work

Being the best place to work in health care enables Kaiser Permanente to attract, retain and reward the best people in health care. That means setting the standard for employee engagement; career development and security; workplace health, wellness and safety—and wages and benefits. It’s why more than 90 percent of employees say they are proud to work at Kaiser Permanente and have confidence in KP’s business success.

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