More than 10,000 hotel workers who are members of UNITE HERE – a union that includes people working in hospitality, transportation and several other sectors – are on strike for several days.
A UNITE HERE press release before the strikes began said workers in 12 U.S. cities “have authorized strikes at Hilton, Hyatt, Marriott and Omni hotels that are locked in unresolved contract negotiations.”
Workers in nine of the 12 cities are on strike, and all but one began Sunday. A UNITE HERE tracker updated Monday morning showed that 5,000 UNITE HERE members in Honolulu, nearly 2,100 in San Francisco and more than 900 in Boston were on strike.
“We wouldn’t have had a day to rest, relax, and enjoy the fruits of the labor movement if our union predecessors hadn’t fought for them — but that fight isn’t over,” UNITE HERE International President Gwen Mills said in a statement. “This year, hospitality workers across the United States are celebrating Labor Day by fighting for wage increases, fair workloads, and the reversal of COVID-era service and staffing cuts.”
Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed that the leisure and hospitality sector took much longer than the overall U.S. labor market to surpass the level of employment seen in February 2020, after the United States experienced significant job losses during the pandemic.
Job gains have been weak in the leisure and hospitality sector, with the sector seeing slight employment declines in January and April. However, the overall job market is softer and it may be harder to find a job today than it was a few years ago.
Mills said workers are on strike because “the hospitality industry has gone off the rails.”
“During the COVID pandemic, everyone suffered, but now the hotel industry is making record profits while employees and guests are being left behind,” Mills said. “Too many hotels still haven’t restored the standard services guests deserve, like automated daily housekeeping and room service.”
Mills noted how hospitality workers’ incomes affect spending by workers and their households.
“Workers are not earning enough to support their families,” Mills said. “Many can no longer afford to live in the cities where they serve their guests, and the grueling workloads are breaking their bodies. We will not accept a ‘new normal’ in which hotel companies profit by reducing their offerings to guests and abandoning their commitments to workers.”
The union’s hotel tracker shows that the striking workers are from the Fairmont Copley Plaza in Boston and various Hyatt, Marriott and Hilton properties. That includes workers at seven hotels in Honolulu, four in Boston and five in San Francisco. In total, the workers represent 25 hotels.
“Our colleagues are the heart of our company, and Hyatt has a long history of working with the unions that represent our employees, including UNITE HERE,” Michael D’Angelo, Hyatt’s head of labor relations for the Americas, said in a statement. “We are disappointed that UNITE HERE has chosen to strike while Hyatt remains willing to continue negotiations in good faith.”
“We have a history of offering competitive wages and benefits in every market, including comprehensive health care at little or no cost and a retirement savings plan,” D’Angelo added. “We have offered competitive wages, health care and retirement benefits at the hotels currently on strike, and our colleagues’ benefits and wages remain unchanged while we negotiate a new agreement. We look forward to continuing to negotiate fair contracts and recognizing the contributions of Hyatt employees.”
According to UNITE HERE’s tracking, the striking workers are from four Hyatt properties.
“Hyatt hotels have contingency plans in place to minimize the impact on hotel operations related to strike activity,” D’Angelo said.
Workers at several Hilton properties, including one in San Diego, are on strike.
“Hilton is committed to maintaining a cooperative and productive relationship with the unions that represent some of our associates, and we remain committed to negotiating in good faith to reach fair and reasonable agreements that benefit both our associates and our hotels,” a Hilton spokesperson said. “We are also fully committed to providing our guests with our iconic hospitality, and our hotels have contingency plans in place to ensure operations continue to run as smoothly as possible.”
The strikes are scheduled for September 1-3, with the exception of Seattle and San Diego, where workers began striking September 1-2, and Baltimore, where they began striking Monday. 200 UNITE HERE members are on strike in Baltimore, working for Hilton Baltimore Inner Harbor.
“Strikes have also been authorized and could begin at any time in New Haven, Oakland and Providence,” said a September 2 press release from UNITE HERE.
Marriott and Fairmont Copley Plaza did not immediately respond to Business Insider’s request for comment.
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