For immediate release
April 2, 2014
Dmitri Iglitzin
206-257-6003
In Landmark Case, Federal Judge Rules Against Sheraton Anchorage Hotel, Ordering Reinstatement of Unlawfully Fired Workers and Other Remedial Actions
Case Marks Latest Legal Defeat for Hotel in High-Profile Labor Dispute
[Anchorage, Alaska] On March 18, 2014, United States District Judge Sharon L. Gleason issued a Decision and Order on Petition for Injunctive Relief in which she found against the Sheraton Anchorage Hotel, and for UNITE HERE Local 878 and the National Labor Relations Board, on all issues. The ruling is the latest legal defeat for a hotel that has faced 40 unfair labor practice charges, three lengthy federal labor board hearings, and two federal injunctions.
In its petition for injunctive relief—a relatively rare judicial proceeding— the federal government asserted that the Sheraton Anchorage committed approximately 40 unfair labor practices (ULPs), allegations that were found meritorious nine months ago by NLRB Administrative Law Judge John J. McCarrick. The ULPs involve claims that Remington Lodging & Hospitality (“Remington”), the Texas-based corporation that operates the Sheraton Anchorage Hotel & Spa, violated federal labor law by unlawfully interrogating and surveilling its employees, disciplining and firing union supporters, and banning union representatives from its property, among other things.
The Court ordered the hotel to immediately reinstate three unlawfully fired employees, rescind other unlawful discipline, reinstate the sick leave policy, and take numerous other steps to ameliorate the damage done to Local 878, its members, and the collective bargaining process.
This order follows on the heels of a February 2, 2012, federal court order issued by United States District Judge Timothy M. Burgess directing the hotel to return to the bargaining table with Local 878 and reinstate healthcare. It also follows an April 24, 2013, ruling by the National Labor Relations Board that the hotel has committed numerous serious unfair labor practices, including unlawfully eliminating the Union health benefits plan, firing four workers and disciplining other union supporters, and withdrawing union recognition.
Since 2009, Sheraton workers have struggled to protect themselves from the employer’s egregious assaults. To date, this high-profile labor dispute has been marked by the filing of over 40 unfair labor practice charges, three lengthy NLRB hearings, two federal injunctions issued against the hotel, two meritless federal lawsuits filed by the hotel, and an ongoing boycott
For questions or comment, please contact Dmitri Iglitzin (dl) 206.257-6003.