Tens of thousands of Kaiser Permanente nurses, pharmacists, midwives, rehab therapists and other frontline medical staff are going on strike. Organizers say the five-day strike across 500 medical centers and offices in California, Hawaii and Oregon could be the largest in the history of the United Nurses Associations of California/Union of Health Care Professionals. They’re asking for a 25% increase in salaries over four years, claiming that wages have not kept up with inflation. Here’s pharmacist Jackie Hua.

Jackie Hua: “During COVID, we were called heroes with capes on. But now that COVID is over, you know, we’re being thrown under the bus. We’re being told, 'No, we don't want to negotiate anymore. We don’t want to come to the table and negotiate anymore and give you guys a contract.’”