More than 10,000 employees in 25 US hotels were on strike On Monday, they chose Labor Day weekend to amplify their demands for higher wages, fairer workloads and a reversal of COVID-era austerity measures.
The UNITE HERE unionrepresenting striking housekeepers and other hospitality workers, said 200 employees at the Hilton Baltimore Inner Harbor were the last to walk off the job.
Nearly half of the striking workers – or 5,000 – are in Honolulu. Thousands of workers are also striking in Boston, San Francisco, Seattle, San Diego and San Jose, California. The strikes targeting Marriott, Hilton and Hyatt hotels are expected to last one to three days.
UNITE HERE reported that a total of 15,000 workers voted to authorize strikes. These strikes could soon spread to other cities, including New Haven, Connecticut, Oakland, California, and Providence, Rhode Island.
Union president Gwen Mills says the strikes are part of long lasting struggle to ensure a family income for service providers that is comparable to traditional male-dominated sectors.
“The work in hospitality is generally undervalued and it is no coincidence that it is disproportionately women and people of color who do this work,” Mills said.
Housekeepers union members want their work reinstated automatic daily room cleaning at major hotel chains, which say they have been saddled with unmanageable workloads, or in many cases, reduced hours and a drop in revenue. Many hotels cut services during the coronavirus pandemic and never recovered.
However, hotels say guests are no longer requesting daily room cleaning and other services.
Michael D’Angelo, head of labor relations for Hyatt in the Americas, said in a statement Monday that the chain has contingency plans in place to minimize the impact of the strikes on hotel operations.
“We are disappointed that UNITE HERE has chosen to strike while Hyatt remains willing to negotiate,” D’Angelo said. “We look forward to continuing to negotiate fair contracts and recognizing the contributions of Hyatt employees.”
Messages seeking comment were left with Marriott and Hilton on Monday.
