[ Restaurant workers at San Francisco International Airport
approved a new union contract on Sunday, giving them a $5 per hour
raise and free family health care, after 1,000 workers went out on
strike for three days last week.]
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SFO RESTAURANT WORKERS WIN $5 RAISE, FREE FAMILY HEALTH CARE
FOLLOWING STRIKE  
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Tyche Hendricks
October 3, 2022
KQED
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_ Restaurant workers at San Francisco International Airport approved
a new union contract on Sunday, giving them a $5 per hour raise and
free family health care, after 1,000 workers went out on strike for
three days last week. _

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UPDATE, 10 A.M. MONDAY: Restaurant workers at San Francisco
International Airport approved a new union contract on Sunday, giving
them a $5 per hour raise and free family health care, after 1,000
workers went out on strike for three days last week.

A tentative agreement between the union and the airport's consortium
of restaurants was announced Thursday, after the union's bargaining
committee unanimously approved it.

The union said Sunday the deal passed the hospitality workers' union,
UNITE HERE Local 2, by a vote of 99.5%. Workers will immediately get a
$3 per hour raise, with the entire $5 raise coming by September 2024.
Most workers' hourly wage will increase almost 30%, from $17.05 to
$22.05.

Workers will also receive free platinum-tier family health insurance
— including medical, dental and vision — with no premiums and
co-pays of less than $30 for most doctor's visits and prescriptions.

The union also secured increased retirement income through a
defined-benefit pension, a retention policy to protect workers' jobs
when outlets change operators, and a one-time $1,500 bonus.

"This victory is more than I ever dreamed of," said April Asfour, a
cook at Boudin Bakery Café at SFO, in a statement released by UNITE
HERE Local 2. "I have six kids, and this raise will help me to support
them. And with the health care that we won, I can cover all of them
for free. I’m so proud that we stood up for ourselves, because
everything we won will help me give my family a better life."

The win "shows the world that fast-food jobs can in fact be good,
family-sustaining jobs, and it's all because workers had the courage
to strike," said Anand Singh, president of UNITE HERE Local 2. "After
three years without a raise, SFO's fast-food workers were tired of
working two or even three jobs just to survive — so they took their
lives into their own hands and won a better future."

According to union officials, the strike included employees at 84 food
and beverage outlets throughout SFO. The contract will expire in
August 2025.

ORIGINAL POST, SEPT. 30: The roughly 1,000 food service workers at
San Francisco International Airport who went on strike this week for
higher pay and benefits will be voting on a contract Sunday that union
leaders say “hits all the marks” for a living wage.

The deal, reached Wednesday night, just three days into the strike,
showed the power of an organized workforce — a rarity in the U.S.
food service industry — but it also showed the effect of some key
pressure brought to bear by San Francisco's Board of Supervisors,
those close to the negotiations say.

When the airport cooks, dishwashers, servers, bartenders and baristas
of UNITE HERE Local 2 walked off the job Monday morning, contract
negotiations had been underway for nine months but union officials
said the two sides remained far apart.

“We felt that there was no movement,” said Gabriela Mitose, 56, an
airport bartender for almost 30 years who was a member of the
negotiating team. “Our voices weren’t being heard. So we had to be
loud."

The impact of the walkout inside SFO was swift, with most restaurants,
coffee shops, bars and airport lounges closing entirely or operating
only limited hours.

“The airport restaurants can't function without the workers,” said
Anand Singh, president of Local 2. “Striking is not an easy thing.
But I think we were exacting a real toll on the employers that wasn't
sustainable for them.”

At every terminal, workers marched at the curb, chanting and waving
union signs reading “One Job Should Be Enough.”

Mitose, who makes $15.10 per hour plus tips at the Lark Creek Grill,
said that one job had not been enough for her to cover her mortgage
payments. She worked a second job for many years, but it took a heavy
toll.

“When you work two jobs for over 15 years, your health takes a
really big hit,” she said.

'Shocked and appalled'

The strike made headlines, and some members of San Francisco’s Board
of Supervisors joined the picket lines this week. On Tuesday night,
the supervisors called a hearing on the strike.

Union officials testified at the hearing that airport food service
workers haven’t had a raise since 2018, and more than one-third of
them hold down two or more jobs. Workers described sleeping in their
cars between shifts and bathing in public restrooms, because their
long commutes home would rob them of precious hours to sleep.

“When we listed our concerns to the Board of Supervisors, they
looked pretty shocked and appalled,” said Mitose, who spoke at the
meeting.

Board members responded with outrage and noted that the city is the
landlord for the restaurants who have leases to do business at the
airport.

“It’s an embarrassment that the airport of the city and county of
San Francisco treats workers like dirt,” declared Supervisor Hillary
Ronen, who chairs the budget committee. “I’m going to start
scrutinizing these leases like you’ve never seen before, and
nothing’s getting past that committee until these workers are
treated fairly.”

She and others urged SFO Director Ivar Satero to take a stronger role
in negotiations. And, after Local 2 officials described how a handful
of new businesses were ignoring the SFO requirement to allow workers
to vote on union membership, supervisors pressed Satero to take
action.

“We’ve always enjoyed such strong relationships with the unions
… I feel like we really got caught off guard by this whole issue,”
admitted Satero, who vowed to be more vigilant.

The board also pressured the group of 30 restaurant employers — who
bargain jointly with Local 2 — to meet the needs of workers.

Restaurateur Kevin Westlye, who spoke on behalf of the employer group,
said the owners are pinched by inflation. And he made a pitch for the
airport to let the group raise menu prices higher than the current
allowance to charge 12% above prevailing “street pricing” at city
restaurants.

“We have no issue with giving the employees more money, we have no
issue with the union and we have no issue with the airport,” said
Westlye. But, he added, “You’ve got us right now in an untenable
vise grip.”

Supervisors encouraged the airport to meet the owners halfway on their
inflation concerns.

“I see absolutely no reason you guys can’t all just get in the
room. The airport’s got something to give, your employer group’s
got something to give ... Local 2 already gave a lot,” said
Supervisor Aaron Peskin. “So why don’t you guys go sit down and
work it out and we just want to see this strike finished.”

A little more than 24 hours later, a tentative deal was announced.

Mitose, the bartender and Local 2 member, said she heard about it from
a co-worker. She had been at the negotiations earlier Wednesday night
but had to leave before they concluded.

“We got the phone call at midnight,” she said. “We were so
excited. It's just such a relief to know that you can go back to work
and things will get better.”

'This is the workers' victory'

Neither SFO nor the restaurant group would comment on what happened
after Tuesday’s hearing. But Supervisor Rafael Mandelman said the
airport did agree to let menu prices go up, potentially breaking the
logjam.

“I don't know the details, but I do know that the airport is
allowing the restaurants to collect some additional compensation for
the workers on the checks that people are going to be paying,” he
said. “So prices will go up at the airport.”

Mandelman added, “This is a busy airport, the gateway to San
Francisco. And the city general fund benefits from payments from the
airport. So we need to not have labor unrest at this airport.”

Singh, the union president, would not reveal the details of the
three-year contract before workers vote to ratify it on Sunday. But he
said it includes “significant” raises and fully paid family health
insurance.

“We’re very excited by this deal,” he said. “It hits all the
marks.”

And he credited the supervisors — who, he pointed out, rarely speak
in unison on anything.

“There's no question that the Board of Supervisors had a real impact
here. ... They were really shoulder to shoulder and unanimous in their
support of the workers,” Singh said. But, he added, “At the end of
the day, this is the workers' victory.”

Mitose was back at her job Thursday at the Lark Creek Grill in
Terminal 2.

“We’re open for business, and everybody's coming in with happy
faces,” she said. “When you don’t have that extra stress about
your paycheck, you come in with a better attitude. So you’re going
to get way better service.”

_The update to this story includes reporting from Bay City News._

* San Francisco International Airport
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* Unite Here Local 2
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