For the first time, we held the Alliance Academy Awards to celebrate the past year's accomplishment by Alliance members like YOU! The following eight awards were presented during the 2024 Alliance Leadership Conference in Hollywood, CA.
Category: Best UBT Expansion
Winner: Hawaii
Accepting the Award for Best UBT Expansion: Dee Dee Urdangen-Cotow and Teri Carvalho-Luke.
At the start of 2023, only about one-half of the departments in Hawaii had formed UBTs. Over the course of 2023, they went from 64 UBTs to 97 UBTs, an increase of 52% - that’s 33 new teams. For those of you who have launched Unit-based teams, you know it takes a lot of work! This region is planning to add more than 30 additional teams in 2024, to achieve 100% coverage.
Category: Best Revenue Initiatives
Winner: Georgia
Accepting the Award for Best Revenue Initiatives: Mary Pike and Donyell Milton.
In Georgia, both labor and KP partners worked to increase revenue by improving co-pay and outstanding balance collection, and by improving over the Counter pharmacy sales. These projects together achieved improved revenue of 2.4 million dollars, the best revenue initiatives in 2023. As a result of this work, Alliance members in this region received one of their largest PSP awards ever.
Category: Best Overall PSP performance
Winner: Northwest
Accepting the Award for Best Overall PSP Performance: Greg Chavez, Krista Lehan, and Todd Lindamood.
Alliance members in the Northwest received the highest PSP in the Alliance this year, with an average payment per FTE of $3,513, which increased by a further $70 per FTE after the payment methodology was corrected. This region ALONE achieved 14.5 million in affordability savings, improved attendance, improved Press-Gainey and HCAP service scores, patient safety composites, and best place to work metrics. The region also significantly exceeded its financial gate. As a result, the region scored 110% of the PSP payout.
Category: Best UBT Affordability Work
Winner: Colorado
Accepting the Award for Best UBT Affordability Work: JJ Cassa and Amy Inglis
Alliance members in Colorado achieved, relative to their size, THE GREATEST PSP affordability UBT performance. Alliance members in UFCW Local 7 and their management partners achieved savings of 8.6 million dollars far exceeding the PSP goal of 3 million. They achieved this success through the dedication and hard work of the UBTs, despite challenges resulting from overall problems with the partnership in the region. And because they more than doubled their goal, they have already met their goal for 2024 as well.
Category: Best First Contract
Winner: Mid-Atlantic States / UFCW local 27 and UFCW local 400
Accepting the Award for Best First Contract: Yolanda Anwar and Jessica Hack
After a fight that lasted a year and a half, UFCW 27 and 400 in the Mid-Atlantic states, won a first contract for approximately 100 rehab therapists in October of last year. Members won five percent across-the-board wage increases, with additional raises through the establishment of a wage scale. They protected their retirement benefits, addressed patient management time, and lined up their contract with the National Agreement.
Category: Best Organizing
Winner: Northern California / UNAC-UHCP
Accepting the Award for Best Organizing: Debra Sung and David Sereni
In Northern California, UNAC/UHCP continues to expand through an active organizing program. The first UNAC and Alliance members in Northern California were 1,400 rehab therapists who organized in 2020 and achieved their first contract in 2021. Building on that base, UNAC/UHCP went on in the last year to organize 600 Physicians’ Assistants, 400 CRNA’s, and 150 Nurse Midwives. These new groups are getting ready to win great first contracts.
Category: Best Member Mobilization
Winner: Southern California / All Alliance SCAL Unions
Accepting the Award for Best Member Mobilization on behalf of all Alliance SCAL unions: members of the Alliance Mobilization Committee: Michael Ulloa, Shamika Romanak, Kathleen Theobald, Kuusela Hilo, Don Henley, and Norberto Gomez.
Southern California unions led the Alliance in the Demand Letter campaign with a total of 20,675 signatures. Unions engaged stewards and activists across all the unions and created communications and video messages. To conclude the campaign, more than 30 union leaders and rank-and-file members from all Alliance unions delivered nine boxes of petitions at KP’s regional headquarters. And they have signed up 206 UBT co-leads who have committed to bringing the staffing discussion to the UBT level.
Category: Best Pay Raise Victory
Winner: Washington / UCFW Local 3000
Accepting the Award for Best Pay Raise Victory: Cathy McPhail and Lauren VanWormer
Local 3000 union members in KP’s Washington region will be receiving market adjustments, changing Kaiser’s longstanding policy of holding all adjustments until bargaining. Seattle Washington area is one of the most unionized health care markets in the United States, and UFCW 3000 and other health care unions have won big raises at Seattle’s major health systems. KP’s wages have fallen far behind the competition. Local 3000 and the Alliance have been advocating for market adjustments for over a year and involving members in the fight. Thanks to this victory, UFCW members will get additional raises of 5% to 9% depending on job classification.
View photos of our winners below.
