Kaiser Permanente and labor unions reached a tentative agreement to resolve a contentious contract dispute that sent workers to picket lines earlier this month.
Unions and the health system announced the deal Friday morning, after the first full day of bargaining following a strike by more than 75,000 Kaiser nurses, pharmacists and other workers. The strike, which lasted up to three days, was the largest on record in healthcare.
Neither side immediately provided terms of the tentative agreement.
Wages and staffing across Kaiser hospitals and clinics were key issues in negotiations. The unions said Kaiser outsourcing was a sticking point. Acting U.S. Labor Secretary Julie Su had joined the negotiations to help resolve the disputes.
Unions warned of a larger and longer work stoppage in November without an agreement.
Kaiser, based in Oakland, Calif., has operations that span health insurance and medical care, including hospitals, medical offices and pharmacies.
The system serves 12.7 million members at 40 hospitals and more than 620 medical offices, mostly on the West Coast. Kaiser counts about 213,000 employees who aren’t physicians.
The recent work stoppage forced Kaiser to hire temporary workers, close pharmacies and clinics and postpone some procedures.