Kaiser Permanente has reached an agreement with a coalition of labor unions that had threatened to strike next month.

If the contract settlement is ratified by workers, the potential strike of 3,600 Colorado employees scheduled for Oct. 14 will be canceled, according to releases from the labor union coalition and Kaiser on Wednesday. The two entities have been negotiating for almost five months.

The four-year agreement involves Kaiser providing $130 million to fund free education in order to combat the healthcare worker shortages, annual raises of 3% the first year and 2% plus a 1% lump sum the following three, and protections as well as some expansions for retirement benefits.

Georgette Bradford, an ultrasound technologist at Kaiser in Sacramento, said that the agreement will help rebuild the “partnership” between Kaiser and its workers.

“Reaching an agreement was not easy, it had lots of twists and turns, but in the end, we accomplished what we set out to do – reach an agreement that is good for patients, workers and our communities,” Bradford said in the coalition’s release.

Arlene Peasnall, interim chief human resources officer for Kaiser, said that the company values and respects its employees.

“Kaiser Permanente has an unparalleled track record of working constructively with labor to solve problems together to improve the care and service offered to our members and patients,” Peasnall said in Kaiser’s release. “We may disagree at times, but we have always been able to work through our challenges to align on common goals.”