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MORE THAN 10,000 US HOTEL WORKERS STRIKE ON LABOR DAY WEEKEND  
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Robert Tait
September 1, 2024
The Guardian
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_ Staff demand wage increases and reversal of pandemic-era cutbacks
that impose ‘painful’ working conditions _

Striking hotel workers walk the picket line outside the
Intercontinental Hotel in Los Angeles, California, in July 2023. ,
Ringo Chiu/AFP/Getty Images

 

Thousands of US hotel workers went on strike on Sunday for improved
pay and conditions in a dispute likely to disrupt many Labor Day
weekend holiday travelers, amid union warnings that industrial action
could escalate.

More than 10,000 workers walked off the job at hotels in Boston,
Seattle, Honolulu, Kauai and Greenwich, Connecticut
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Californian cities of San Francisco, Sand Diego and San Jose after
contract talks with the establishments’ owners collapsed.

The Unite Here union, which represents workers in hotels, casinos and
airports across the US and Canada, warned that staff in other city
were ready to join the strike.

“Strikes have also been authorised and could begin at any time,” a
union statement said, adding that hotels in Baltimore, Providence,
Oakland, New Haven could be affected.

Staff are demanding wage increases and the reversal of pandemic era
job cuts that union organisers say has increased the workload of
remaining workers and imposed “painful” working conditions.

“The hotel industry has rebounded from the pandemic, and room rates
are at record highs,” Gwen Mills, Unite Here’s international
president, said in a statement. “But hotel workers can’t afford to
live in the cities that they welcome guests to. Too many hotel workers
have to work two or sometimes three jobs in order to make ends meet.

“We won’t accept a ‘new normal’ where hotel companies profit
by cutting their offerings to guests and abandoning their commitments
to workers.”

The union said that, as of Sunday morning, the strike had impacted 24
hotels in eight cities.

It was taking place on a weekend which was expected to be the busiest
on Labour Day records, according to Transport Security Administration
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Unite Here, which has more than 275,000 members, has accused the hotel
industry of using cutbacks triggered by Covid-related lockdowns to
permanently cut staff and reduce guest services.

It has asked traveling guests at affected hotels to cancel their visit
and demand refunds.

The strike, which is scheduled to last three days, follows months of
talks between workers and the Hilton, Hyatt, Marriott and Omni hotel
chains.

Hyatt said it was disappointed by the decision to strike. “We look
forward to continuing to negotiate fair contracts and recognise the
contributions of Hyatt employees,” said Michael D’Angelo, the
firm’s head of labour relations.

[MODERATOR- ALSO OF INTEREST/RELATED -- 

A Demonstration of Working-Class Power
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Michael Kazin
Dissent Magazine
Labor Day was the first national holiday that a social movement both
created and persuaded the state and businesses to honor.
August 30, 2024]

_ROBERT TAIT is a journalist based in Washington DC. He was
previously the Guardian's correspondent in Czech Republic, Iran and
Turkey_

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* Labor
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* Hotel workers
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* UNITE HERE
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* strike
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* Labor Day
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