Over 10,000 Hotel Workers on Strike for Labor Day Weekend

More than 10,000 employees associated with the Unite Here union began a multi-day strike on Sunday against two dozen American hotels, demanding higher wages and increased staffing.

Affected hotels include those run by Hilton, Hyatt, Sheraton, Westin (Marriott), and Fairmont, the union said in a Sept. 1 press release. In most hotels, the strikes are being held until Tuesday.

The workers are calling for “higher wages, fair staffing and workloads” and a reversal of COVID-19 pandemic wage cuts. Workers claim that the wages being paid are not enough to cover the cost of living, with many forced to do two jobs to support themselves, according to Unite Here.

“After months of unresolved negotiations, hotel workers with the UNITE HERE union walked off the job today at 24 hotels in eight cities: Boston, Greenwich, Honolulu, Kauai, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose, and Seattle,” the union said in the press release. “Each city’s strike will last two or three days ... Strikes have also been authorized and could begin at any time in Baltimore, New Haven, Oakland, and Providence.”

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