Hotel workers walk out to protest stalled contract negotiations over Labor Day

Approximately 40,000 hotel workers have union contracts up this year across the United States and Canada and some of them are taking time off on the busiest Labor Day travel period ever.

Thousands of hotel employees at more than a dozen locations across the nation walked out after failing to come to an agreement in contract negotiations.

Unite Here — a powerful national hospitality workers union that has some 275,000 members, the majority of them women and people of color — says its workers are striking for higher pay, increased staffing and reduced workloads.

Workers are calling for higher wages, fair staffing and workloads, and the reversal of COVID-era cuts. They say their wages aren’t enough to cover the cost of living, and many have to work two jobs to make ends meet.

The union says that many hotels took advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic to cut staffing and guest services that were never restored, causing workers to lose jobs and income – and creating painful working conditions for those who carry the increased workload.

Room rates are at record highs, and the U.S. hotel industry made over $100 billion in gross operating profit in 2022.

But hotel staffing per occupied room was down 13% from 2019 to 2022 as many hotels maintained COVID-era cuts, including understaffing, ending automatic daily housekeeping, and removing food and beverage options.

The strikes are expected to last three days, just as many travelers’ holiday weekend plans were in full swing.

More workers in other cities could soon join in the labor action but hotel chains say they’ll continue to operate normally, although travelers could see disruptions as a result of the walk out in cities from Boston to San Francisco.

The initial strikes, which involve mostly Hilton, Marriott and Hyatt properties, could spread later Sunday or Monday to other communities, including New Haven, Conn.; Baltimore; Oakland; San Diego; San Jose; and Honolulu and Kauai, Hawaii.

The work stoppage threatens to cause disruptions and chaos on a busy holiday weekend. The Transportation Security Administration has said it expects this year to have the busiest Labor Day travel period on record.

As of Sunday morning, the strikes have affected 10 properties with more than 7,400 rooms.

Michael D’Angelo, a Hyatt spokesperson, said in a statement that the company “has a long history of cooperation with the unions that represent our employees” and is “disappointed that UNITE HERE has chosen to strike while Hyatt remains willing to negotiate.”

The hotels have plans in place to “minimize impact on hotel operations” related to the strikes, D’Angelo said.

Hilton said it “makes every effort to maintain a cooperative and productive relationship” with the union, adding that the chain is “committed to negotiating in good faith to reach fair and reasonable agreements.”

“We’re on strike because the hotel industry has gotten off track,” said Gwen Mills, International President of UNITE HERE. “During COVID, everyone suffered, but now the hotel industry is making record profits while workers and guests are left behind. Too many hotels still haven’t restored standard services that guests deserve, like automatic daily housekeeping and room service.”

“Workers aren’t making enough to support their families,” said Mills. “Many can no longer afford to live in the cities that they welcome guests to, and painful workloads are breaking their bodies. We won’t accept a ‘new normal’ where hotel companies profit by cutting their offerings to guests and abandoning their commitments to workers.”

The union urges guests not to eat, sleep, or meet at any hotel that is on strike or where workers have been on strike until they secure a new contract.

Hotels may suspend services while trying to operate with skeleton staffing, and picket lines will run outside struck hotels for up to 24 hours a day.

Guests are encouraged to consult the union’s travel guide and use its Labor Dispute Map, where they can search hotels by name or city to learn whether a hotel is on strike and find alternatives.

“The hotel industry has gotten away with making record profits while workers are unable to enjoy an American standard of living,” said New Jersey Democrat Lisa McCormick.”Workers deserve our support as they struggle against greedy hotel companies.”