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Kaiser Permanente Gives The Pink Slip To 530 Workers

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com)  — Kaiser announced Saturday that at least 530 workers will no longer be Permanente.

A company official confirmed one of the nation's leading HMOs is cutting staff.

The layoffs constitute a small percentage of the company's workforce -- eight-tenths of one percent.

It was uncertain how many of the 530 layoffs would come from Southern California.

The HMO's nearly 66,000 workers and doctors are located from Kern County to the Mexican border.

Kaiser said that any union workers who are let go will get pay (and benefits) for a year. They also said they hoped to rehire many of the same people when they expect "significant membership growth."

"Health care in America is in the midst of one of the most exciting and challenging times in its history, the firm said in a statement today. "We have undertaken a series of cost-reduction initiatives to ensure we meet these changing dynamics, and they include some position eliminations."

They also stressed that the layoffs would not impede or impact on patient care.

(©2012 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services contributed to this report.)

 

 

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