Workers are walking off the job in eight US cities over pandemic-era cost-cutting measures.
Some 10,000 hotel workers across the United States went on strike over a major holiday weekend to demand better pay and working conditions.
Workers walked off the job Sunday in eight cities, including Boston, Honolulu, San Francisco, San Diego and Seattle, after the UNITE HERE union and hotel chains Hilton, Hyatt and Marriott failed to reach an agreement in contract negotiations.
UNITE HERE international president Gwen Mills said the union had called the strike ahead of Labor Day on Monday as hotels had failed to reverse cost-cutting measures introduced during the COVID-19 pandemic despite making “record profits.”
“Too many hotels have yet to restore the standard services that guests deserve, such as automatic daily housekeeping and room service. Workers are not earning enough to support their families,” Mills said in a statement.
“Many can no longer afford to live in the cities where they welcome guests, and painful workloads are taking a toll on their bodies. We will not accept a ‘new normal’ where hospitality companies profit by reducing their offerings to guests and abandoning their commitments to workers.”
The union said strikes have also been authorized in Baltimore, New Haven, Oakland and Providence and could begin in those cities at any time.
Michael D'Angelo, Hyatt's director of U.S. labor relations, said the chain had a “long history of cooperation” with unions and was disappointed that UNITE HERE had decided to strike.
“We look forward to continuing to negotiate fair contracts and recognize the contributions of Hyatt employees. Hyatt hotels have contingency plans in place to minimize the impact on hotel operations in the event of a potential strike,” D'Angelo said in a statement.
Hilton and Marriott did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Labor Day weekend is typically one of the busiest travel periods in the U.S.
Auto organization AAA said last month that reservations over Labor Day weekend were up 9 percent compared with last year.
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has said it expects a record 17 million people to travel during the period.
