Healthcare workers arrested at Labor Day protest

25 people were arrested during a Labor Day protest of Kaiser Permanente healthcare workers here in the Golden State.

Transcript

00:00 Jessica Cruz was showered with cheers as she was arrested in East Hollywood.

00:06 The nurse was part of a sit in outside Kaiser Permanente. How often do you

00:13 hear complaints from patients? I hear complaints from patients every day, but

00:18 it's worse when I have to tell the patients, I'm sorry, there's no

00:21 available appointment until one month, two months up to three months out. On

00:26 Monday, hundreds of unionized health care workers took part in a march and

00:30 rally to protest what they called unsafe staffing levels, long patient

00:34 lines and low wages across the country. 85,000 Kaiser workers say they may

00:40 strike as early as October 1st if a new labor contract isn't reached before

00:45 them. We need to let Kaiser know that we're not playing with them anymore. In

00:50 a written statement, Kaiser Permanente says it hired more than 29,000 new

00:54 employees last year, and it's on pace to exceed that this year. And Kaiser's

00:59 employee turnover rate is 8.5% compared to 21.4% at most health care

01:06 organizations. The demonstrators were granted a permit that included the

01:11 closure of Sunset Boulevard. We're here to support the group just as much as

01:15 uh, they're here to make their point. We facilitate their civil rights,

01:20 First Amendment rights on. We're more than happy to do so. 20 minutes

01:24 to disperse. Then they were told to disperse those that didn't were cited

01:31 for a misdemeanor and released. Having the cameras rolling, showing that, you

01:37 know, health care workers showing that your nurses are out there willing to

01:42 put themselves on the line for you

01:45 is like, okay, you know, it's not something that's getting brushed off.