Momentum Builds as Strikes Continue to Roil Hotel Industry; More Strikes Possible

San Francisco, Calif. – Eighty-five striking hotel workers and supporters were arrested in San Francisco during a non-violent civil disobedience yesterday as widespread strikes continued to affect the U.S. hotel industry. Over 3,800 Hilton, Hyatt, and Marriott hotel workers with the UNITE HERE union remain on strike in San Francisco and Honolulu, and guests report significant disruptions to hotel operations. Approx. 756 Hilton workers in Boston have reached a tentative agreement on a new contract and will hold a ratification vote today. Approx. 650 Hilton, Hyatt, and Marriott workers in San Jose have ratified or will vote today to ratify their new contracts.

The arrests in San Francisco were part of a protest calling on hotels to settle contracts and end weekslong hotel strikes by over 2,000 Hilton, Hyatt, and Marriott workers. The workers are asking hotels to “Bet on SF” and invest in the city by reversing COVID-era staffing and service cuts. During negotiations in August, hotel workers offered to forgo most guaranteed wage increases and make their compensation contingent on future hotel profits if the hotels agreed to take proactive measures to boost San Francisco’s recovery, like reopening restaurants that bring foot traffic downtown, staffing up on bellmen and doormen so there are more eyes on the street, eliminating controversial resort fees, and reversing service cuts so San Francisco hotels can provide the best possible experience.

“I take my job very seriously because I am the eyes and ears on the street, and I know that guests’ experience of San Francisco depends on me,” said Jacov Awoke, a doorman at Hilton San Francisco Union Square for 35 years who was arrested in the civil disobedience. “Unfortunately, understaffing has made it very difficult. For example, when I was short staffed on a shift and helping one guest, another guest’s bag was stolen right in front of the hotel. I’m on strike because I want my hotel to invest in the city and the workers.”

In Boston, around 765 Hilton workers at four hotels will vote today to ratify new contracts with raises and affordable health care. Workers at the Hilton Boston Logan Airport and Hilton Boston Park Plaza hotels were on strike for 24 days; workers at the Hampton Inn & Homewood Suites went on strike for three days during the wave of nationwide hotel strikes over Labor Day weekend.

In San Jose, around 650 workers at five Hilton, Hyatt, and Marriott hotels have already voted or will vote today to ratify new contracts with raises and affordable health care. The settlements follow a three-day strike by workers at the DoubleTree by Hilton San Jose and Signia by Hilton San Jose over Labor Day weekend.

More strikes are possible across the U.S., and the union has urged hotels to notify guests of strike activity; guests arriving at Hilton, Hyatt, and Marriott hotels in the last two months report they were not notified of raucous picket lines or unavailable services, leading to complaints and demands for refunds. Guests are encouraged to consult the union’s travel guide and use its Labor Dispute Map at FairHotel.org, where they can search hotels by name or city to learn whether a hotel is on strike and find alternatives.

“I went on strike to secure a good future for my children,” said Kevin Haynes, a banquet cook at the Hilton Boston Park Plaza. “I’m really proud that my co-workers and I know our worth. We stood together, fought in solidarity, and won this contract together. As ambassadors of the hospitality industry, we help keep the city of Boston going, and we should be able to live where we work.”

“With each contract settlement, hotel workers are proving the hotel companies can afford to give us the wages and workloads we need. And our members are not done yet,” said Gwen Mills, International President of UNITE HERE. “Hotel workers will continue this fight until we win everywhere.”

Workers are calling for higher wages, fair staffing and workloads, and the reversal of COVID-era cuts. They are members of the UNITE HERE union, and they include housekeepers, front desk agents, cooks, dishwashers, servers, bartenders, bellhops, doormen, and more.

After months of contract negotiations, over 10,000 hotel workers across the U.S. have gone on strike since Labor Day weekend. Hotel workers in Baltimore; Boston; Greenwich and New Haven, Conn., Providence, R.I.; Sacramento; San Diego; San Jose; and Toronto, Canada, have recently ratified new union contracts that include wage increases and affordable health care, but the union cautions that strike issues are unresolved in many cities. More strikes have been authorized and could begin at any time in Boston, Honolulu, Kauai, Oakland, San Diego, San Francisco, San Mateo County, and Seattle.