Kaiser nurses protest statewide

By Lucy Diavolo

National Nurse magazine - July | August | September 2025 Issue

Over the past few months, nurses at Kaiser Permanente facilities across California have been speaking out about the rollback of gender-affirming care, layoffs in outpatient clinics, wage theft, and the implementation of untested technologies in their facilities. Nearly 25,000 Kaiser RNs at 22 facilities are represented by California Nurses Association/National Nurses United (CNA/NNU) and will be bargaining for a new contract next year.

In July, registered nurses from Kaiser facilities held a vigil in San Francisco to advocate for their transgender patients and to protest Kaiser’s announcement that it was eliminating some gender-affirming care for those under 19.

“Kaiser’s own foundation has put out research on the efficacy of this care. The evidence is there that this care is safe and effective,” said Sydney Simpson, RN in interventional radiology at Kaiser San Francisco. “What’s unsafe and ineffective is caving to political pressure that puts our patients at risk. We won’t stand for it, and it’s why we’re taking action together.”

In August, RNs who work at Kaiser San Rafael facilities held a rally to protest Kaiser’s plans to lay off 42 RNs and NPs from its outpatient clinics despite the health care giant posting nearly $13 billion in profits last year. RNs point out that patients already suffer unacceptably long wait times — weeks and even months — to get an appointment or to be seen, and that further cuts to staff will delay and deprive Kaiser members of needed care, leading to potentially deadly consequences. The proposed cuts represent about one-fourth of nurses working in Kaiser San Rafael clinics.

“It’s absolutely unacceptable that Kaiser made $13 billion last year, yet is cutting staff,” said Colleen Gibbons, an RN in medical-surgical at Kaiser San Rafael and the chief nurse representative. “We already have patients in all kinds of clinics that wait weeks and weeks, even months, to get seen or scheduled for really important tests and procedures that save lives, like colonoscopies and getting checked out for skin cancers.

On Sept. 23, nurses at 22 Kaiser Permanente facilities across the state held informational pickets to speak out against recent layoffs, wage theft, the implementation of untested technologies, and Kaiser’s prioritization of its finances over patient care. 

“Kaiser has moved quickly to justify recent cuts to nurse staffing, but we won’t stand for that,” said Deb Capistrano, RN in the telemetry unit at Kaiser San Francisco Medical Center. “We know our patients and our communities do best when we have safe staffing in every Kaiser facility, and we won’t accept anything less, especially when we know how much money Kaiser is still taking to the bank.”

“You simply cannot replace nurses with technology like artificial intelligence,” said Michelle Gutierrez Vo, RN in the Adult and Family Medicine Department at Kaiser Fremont Medical Center and a president of CNA. “Instead of looking to these untested technologies being pushed by corporate executives, Kaiser management should be working with us to ensure that issues like safe staffing and wage theft aren’t impacting patients and nurses.” 

Also in September, Kaiser nurses across California held a protest outside an event at the Flamingo Resort in Santa Rosa, Calif., where Kaiser Permanente Medical Group CEO Dr. Maria Ansari was scheduled to speak, to publicly denounce the recent layoffs and gender-affirming care cutbacks. —Lucy Diavolo

Over the past few months, nurses at Kaiser Permanente facilities across California have been speaking out about the rollback of gender-affirming care, layoffs in outpatient clinics, wage theft, and the implementation of untested technologies in their facilities. Nearly 25,000 Kaiser RNs at 22 facilities are represented by California Nurses Association/National Nurses United (CNA/NNU) and will be bargaining for a new contract next year.

In July, registered nurses from Kaiser facilities held a vigil in San Francisco to advocate for their transgender patients and to protest Kaiser’s announcement that it was eliminating some gender-affirming care for those under 19. 

“Kaiser’s own foundation has put out research on the efficacy of this care. The evidence is there that this care is safe and effective,” said Sydney Simpson, RN in interventional radiology at Kaiser San Francisco. “What’s unsafe and ineffective is caving to political pressure that puts our patients at risk. We won’t stand for it, and it’s why we’re taking action together.”

In August, RNs who work at Kaiser San Rafael facilities held a rally to protest Kaiser’s plans to lay off 42 RNs and NPs from its outpatient clinics despite the health care giant posting nearly $13 billion in profits last year. RNs point out that patients already suffer unacceptably long wait times — weeks and even months — to get an appointment or to be seen, and that further cuts to staff will delay and deprive Kaiser members of needed care, leading to potentially deadly consequences. The proposed cuts represent about one-fourth of nurses working in Kaiser San Rafael clinics.

“It’s absolutely unacceptable that Kaiser made $13 billion last year, yet is cutting staff,” said Colleen Gibbons, an RN in medical-surgical at Kaiser San Rafael and the chief nurse representative. “We already have patients in all kinds of clinics that wait weeks and weeks, even months, to get seen or scheduled for really important tests and procedures that save lives, like colonoscopies and getting checked out for skin cancers.

On Sept. 23, nurses at 22 Kaiser Permanente facilities across the state held informational pickets to speak out against recent layoffs, wage theft, the implementation of untested technologies, and Kaiser’s prioritization of its finances over patient care. 

“Kaiser has moved quickly to justify recent cuts to nurse staffing, but we won’t stand for that,” said Deb Capistrano, RN in the telemetry unit at Kaiser San Francisco Medical Center. “We know our patients and our communities do best when we have safe staffing in every Kaiser facility, and we won’t accept anything less, especially when we know how much money Kaiser is still taking to the bank.”

“You simply cannot replace nurses with technology like artificial intelligence,” said Michelle Gutierrez Vo, RN in the Adult and Family Medicine Department at Kaiser Fremont Medical Center and a president of CNA. “Instead of looking to these untested technologies being pushed by corporate executives, Kaiser management should be working with us to ensure that issues like safe staffing and wage theft aren’t impacting patients and nurses.” 

Also in September, Kaiser nurses across California held a protest outside an event at the Flamingo Resort in Santa Rosa, Calif., where Kaiser Permanente Medical Group CEO Dr. Maria Ansari was scheduled to speak, to publicly denounce the recent layoffs and gender-affirming care cutbacks. 

 Lucy Diavolo is a communications specialist at National Nurses United.